Orientation & Training

The investment you make in initial and ongoing training of mentors contributes to the success of your program in a number of ways. Both mentors and mentees need a clear understanding of your expectations for them before they join your program. By making roles and responsibilities clear from the beginning, you can minimize the potential for future misunderstandings.

By providing prospective mentors with a pre-match orientation, you allow them to make a more informed decision about whether to participate in your program. It also gives them the chance to meet other prospective mentors and begin an informal support group.

Mentor training is a vital component of any successful mentoring program. Mentor training is particularly important because it has documented implications for mentors’ perceptions about the mentor-mentee relationship, including their feelings of closeness, support, satisfaction and effectiveness as a mentor. Further, these perceptions of the mentor-mentee relationships are thought to influence the positive outcomes and continuation of the mentor-mentee relationship, suggesting the lasting importance of mentor training for youth outcomes.

Operational Standards for Training

Standard 3.  Training: 

Train prospective mentors in the basic knowledge and skills needed to build an effective mentoring relationship.

The investment you make in initial and ongoing training of mentors contributes to the success of your program in a number of ways. Both mentors and mentees need a clear understanding of your expectations for them before they join your program. By making roles and responsibilities clear from the beginning, you can minimize the potential for future misunderstandings.

Benchmarks:  Mentor Training:  Your program’s mentor training should provide a minimum of two hours of pre-match, in- person training.  The training should include the following topics:  a) Program rules; b) Mentors' goals and expectations; c) Mentors' obligations and appropriate roles; d) Relationship development and maintenance; e) Ethical issues; f) Effective closure of the match; and h) Resources and assistance available to support mentors. 

Enhancements: Mentor Training:  It is important that mentors in your program provide for additional pre-match training opportunities beyond the two-hour, in-person minimum to address the following developmental topics:  youth development process; cultural, gender and economic issues; and opportunities and challenges associated with mentoring specific populations of children (e.g., children of prisoners, youth involved in the juvenile justice system, youth in foster care, high school dropouts), if relevant.

Program uses training to continue to screen mentors for suitability and develops techniques for early trouble-shooting should problems be identified.

Enhancements: Mentee Training

Further, your program should provide training to mentees and his/her parent(s)/guardian(s) (when appropriate) on the following topics: program guidelines; mentor’s obligations and the appropriate roles; mentee’s obligations and the appropriate roles; and parental/guardian involvement guidelines.