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Staff Development

This section includes information on how to create a professional staff development plan to ensure that staff are supported to do their job, apprised of the latest research and trends in mentoring and knowledgeable of additional resources and support.

Finding Qualifed Staff

Why do you need a Staff Development Plan?

While high staff turnover is a challenge common to most youth development programs, it can be especially damaging to a mentoring program. Program staff are not only the public face of your program, but also, in many cases, they are the only personal connection mentors and mentees have to your program. Participants also depend on the expertise and intervention of program staff when their relationships become challenging. A thoughtful and well-designed staff development plan can save valuable resources, by ensuring that you hire the right people and provide them with the support and recognition they need to grow and succeed in their positions.

What characteristics should you look for in program staff?

When recruiting staff for your mentoring program, it's important to ensure that they are qualified and supportive of your program's mission. Because your staff members interact regularly with your program participants and stakeholders, they are key to providing quality program support.

Look for individuals with experience in youth development and volunteer management. Additionally, seek out people with solid communication and listening skills and, in the case of those who will be working with matches, are skilled in resolving conflict. To reduce risk and liability, ensure you fully screen all prospective staff members, including conducting criminal background checks.

What kind of support should you provide for program staff?

Once your staff members are onboard, your program coordinator will need to provide initial orientation and training about:

Your program's mission, purpose and expectations;
Staff roles versus volunteer roles;
How to work with a wide range of program participants, including mentors, mentees and their parents, school administrators, corporate liaisons, etc.; and
How to recruit, screen, train, match and monitor mentors and mentees.

The initial orientation and training is only part of a professional staff development plan. Make sure your staff stays up-to-date regarding the latest mentoring-related research and products. Encourage them to regularly visit the Access Research section at Mentoring.org. In addition, you will need to provide ongoing staff training that builds upon staff members' skills and knowledge.

For example, you could offer workshops on adolescent development, special needs of at-risk youth and gang involvement. Your Local or State Mentoring Partnership is an excellent source of ideas and help in creating a solid staff development plan.

You may also want to consider holding an annual staff retreat. It's a great forum for talking about program goals, building a sense of community and keeping employees well-informed about happenings in your program. Finally, make sure you recognize staff for their contributions and achievements.

Finding a Program Coordinator

What Skills Does the Program Coordinator Need?

If you have not already selected a coordinator for your mentoring program you should do so as soon as possible.

Depending on the size and scope of your program, the position may be paid or volunteer. Larger programs may need more than one program coordinator.

Choose someone with strong leadership abilities and management skills, as your program coordinator will have a number of responsibilities, including:

Managing the overall program;
Recruiting, screening, training and supervising mentors;
Matching mentor pairs and offering ongoing support;
Coordinating mentoring activities;
Developing consistent procedures for recruiting and referring young people;
Developing and maintaining all records, policies and procedures;
Overseeing development and implementation of all promotional and educational efforts;
Tracking program statistics, including budgetary costs, hours, etc;
Cultivating and maintaining all necessary external contacts and relationships for
Implementing and maintaining the mentor program (e.g., partner organizations);
Documenting development of the mentor program;
Developing a plan to evaluate the program, including soliciting participant feedback; and
Developing a plan to recognize program participants.

The training you develop for your program coordinator should be consistent with your Professional Staff Development Plan. For additional training and technical assistance, contact your State or Local Mentoring Partnership or local Volunteer Center.

(These sections are excerpted from How to Build a Successful Mentoring Program Using the Elements of Effective Practice, Section V. How to Manage a Program for Success.)

Staff Development Resources

Additional information, resources and tools are available in the Find Resources section and in the How to Build a Successful Mentoring Program Using the Elements of Effective Practice Toolkit.