Mentoring Urban Youth for Life Change

Mentoring Urban Youth for Life Change
Urban Youth Institute presents Reload: A One-Day Training Experience
Recorded at Reload Los Angeles
September 24, 2005

Speaker: Curt Gibson

Topics to be covered
1. Why mentoring?
2. Biblical bases for mentoring
3. Types of mentoring
4. Best practices of mentoring resources
5. What does a mentor actually do?
6. What works, what doesn't?

Why Mentoring?
Three basic things that we find that a student who comes with an at risk situation. What are their basic characteristics:
1. No significant attachments to caring adults
2. Asset development (low number)
3. Shortage of basic needs being met

The lack of meaningful relationships with adults have been devastating for youth
(Talks about abandoness) mentality
1. Nothing is worth doing
2. Numbness
3. Nobody understand
4. Feeling of incompetent
5. Poor problem solving skills

Biblical Basis for Mentoring
Not stuffing religion down their throat, but making it meaningful through your relationships, actions being able to watch you (incarnational aspect)
"You are the Jesus that they see"

Practice: doing it and learning together

Focus: "Preach the gospel at all times and if necessary use words"
Mentoring is not a bible study, mentoring is them experiencing your life and you experiencing theirs', and them learning from your perspective on life

Vision: You see the image of God in the young person, you see the gifts that God has placed in there lives. It's a different vision from how people see them; you see them the way that God sees them. Sometimes it means that you advocate for them, you help them find a job, helping them with reference letter.

Faith: An understanding that God's work is His work and not ours. We already have a Savior, we don't need another one. We've got to be very careful about this, we want to point to the Savior, not become the Savior.

Power of intercession: Web blog (prayer request) Prayer team that prays, and responds if they've interceded.

Types of Mentoring
1. Community based mentoring: Mentors meet with youth individually on there own time in the community.
2. Site based mentoring: Mentors meet with the youth in a specific location church, school, community center, under supervision of staff
3. One-on-one mentoring: Youth meets with one mentor, big brothers, and big sisters
4. Group mentoring: One mentor meets with several youth
5. Discipleship mentoring: You are an apprentice of Jesus Christ and you are going to look at me, at how I live out my relationship with Jesus, that what the focus in on.
6. Faith-led mentoring: Focus is on love, evangelism is not necessary intended
7. Asset mentoring: Team up with the community to build a healthy community member. Part of the church, living out the values of what it means to be living for the kingdom of God and that includes being politically and socially active in their community.

Best Practices of Mentoring Resources
Goal setting: How will the student be by the age of 30, set expectations
Not based on our expectations but, based on their capacity, ability

Elements of effective practice: (commonality amongst mentors)
1. Clear well thought out plan (set a goal)
2. Who you will serve
3. Criteria

Where the mentoring takes place?
An exit strategy and an intern strategy (don't leave abandoness issues)

What does a Mentor Actually Do?
Mentoring Activities
Mentor recruiting and strategy materials
Practical mentoring
Asset development: Students need; personal mission statements (student's rights)
Physically: where it happens?

40 Developmental Assets - Search Institute
What are assets?
You belong to a faith community
You have non-parents caring adults in your life
You believe your community values, you value your community

First deal with basic needs and do asset development
Basic physical needs need to be met before anything

A lot of the things that Curt Gibson spoke about were in fact quite interesting. It gives a heads up on mentoring skills in order to engage urban youth in a more efective way. I've also realize that alot of the things that he spoke about, we have read in class, Reclaiming Prodigal Son's and Daughter's or The Godbearing Life. A lot of this material made sense.

Resources:
Neighborhood Student Mentoring
UYWI Audio: Mentoring At-Risk Youth by Rueben Austria