Youth Mentoring Programs: Recruiting Youth to Your Mentoring Program
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WHAT DO WE MEAN BY RECRUITING YOUTH?
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WHOM SHOULD YOU RECRUIT?
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WHERE SHOULD YOU RECRUIT?
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HOW DO YOU RECRUIT YOUTH?
WHAT DO WE MEAN BY RECRUITING YOUTH?
Every day, we read about children and teenagers who succumb to drugs or violence, or who drift aimlessly through life without motivation or direction. However, many of those same youth, even those in desperate circumstances, would like to become involved in programs and projects that will have a positive impact on their communities and their lives.
A mentoring program is an excellent way to guide these children and teenagers to lead productive, healthy, and safe lives. But participation in a mentoring program, like anything else, may not be for everyone. Developing a solid recruitment strategy will help your organization identify and approach the children who will benefit most from your program.
To recruit youth is to go out and actively seek out young people to participate in your mentoring program. It is to create strategies to attract youth to your program, and always keep old recruits active at the same time. Recruiting youth creates an impact in your community by giving kids the chance to be productive.
WHOM SHOULD YOU RECRUIT?
When it comes time to identify potential protégés for your program, you have to have a pretty good idea of what you want your program to look like. What are you offering? What are you trying to accomplish? Who in the community can benefit the most from a mentoring program like yours? Once you answer these questions, you'll have a good picture of the people you're looking for.
In other words, you must define the purposes of your program. You have to know what you want to accomplish, so that you can start working on it. Once you have a grasp on which type of work you want to do, it's time to decide which group(s) would get the most out of your program.
There are many ways by which you may start looking for participants. Not every youth will fill the appropriate profile to participate in your program. It's important to match participants and activities, so you must be careful in your selection. You may want to recruit youth who need some additional help to thrive in the community. Here are some possible criteria you may wish to consider when beginning to identify potential young participants:
- The participant has a need to interact with positive adult role models
- The participant comes from a family that is living in poverty or experiencing severe financial stress
- The participant lacks particular academic or job skills necessary for self-improvement or greater life options
- The participant is experiencing failure at school or poor attendance
- The participant has a physical or mental disability or behavior problems that are not beyond the capabilities of an adult mentor but that may inhibit daily, positive interaction with adults or peers
Of course, more important than all of these criteria is the willingness of the participant to take part in a mentoring program. If the youth doesn't want to participate, or is forced to, the objective of your program probably won't be achieved: It may actually be counterproductive for everyone involved. There are ways of persuading a young person to take part in an activity, but anything that goes beyond persuasion and into coercion must be avoided.
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