School and beyond

January in the US is National Mentoring Month which highlights mentoring and the positive impact it can have on young people’s lives (visit mentor for some terrific links, resources and case-studies.)

In Australia, too, the case for youth mentoring is finally getting some of the attention it deserves. As part of newly elected Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s promised “Education Revolution”, mentoring will play a role as detailed in the new policy document “Mentors for our Students.” It documents a pilot program, planned for 25 sites in communities across Australia, which aims to harness the expertise of newly retired professionals and tradespeople to mentor young people, with a focus on helping young people to consider a career in the trades.

This is a terrific idea but the funding opportunities are limited to Local Community Partnerships. Let’s hope those LCPs, new to mentoring, that secure funding are wise enough to tap into the accumulated knowledge and experience of existing, sustainable mentoring programs (such as those listed on the Youth Mentoring Network’s website). This opportunity is too precious to youth mentoring in Australia to squander - let’s work to support these programs to make sure the pilot is a success!