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The Florida Mentoring Partnership, managed by Volunteer USA Foundation this month announced a new pilot program aimed at helping hundreds of teenagers in foster group homes who will soon "age out" of foster care so they can better negotiate the transition to adulthood. The project will pair youth, ages 13-18, with a compassionate adult mentor who will provide one-on-one attention and life-skills support.
A primary focus of the pilot program is to improve educational success among foster youth. Research shows they disproportionally fail, perform below grade average, and drop out of school not because they are "troubled" youth, but because they lack a responsible adult serving as a stable guiding force in their lives. Youth in group care settings are more in need of mentors because they lack the family presence and individualized attention of a foster family.
"There is great evidence that helping youth to complete a high school diploma while in foster care is a major predictor of future success. We want to take an active role in keeping these youth engaged in school, focused on earning their high school diploma, and ensuring they have a plan for their future," said Liza McFadden, Volunteer USA president.
This fall, mentors are being trained and caring adults are being partnered with teens at two Central Florida group homes. Partners in this project include the Florida Mentoring Partnership, Educate Tomorrow, Family Services of Metro Orlando, Guardian ad Litem, Great Oaks Village and Sunnyside Village. Caring mentors are needed now. Please contact Denise Hogan, Project Coordinator at DHogan@fsmetroorlando.org for more information.
Be sure to read the recent news coverage lauding the new foster mentor pilot program in Central Florida!
  Frank and Courtney Brogan were the guests of honor at a reception hosted by Volunteer USA. They were greeted by many of Brogan’s former colleagues and friends. The crowd included the Tallahassee student Brogan mentored from 5th-10th grade, Steven McFarland who is now attending FSU. Volunteer USA chair Barney Bishop and president Liza McFadden recognized his role as an advocate for students and quality education in Florida, as well as a supporter of the Foundation's literacy and mentoring initiatives.
 Proceeds raised from the event will support the Florida Mentoring Partnership's new program focused on mentoring older foster care children to help guide them toward high school graduation and college. Cheers to Frank Brogan; we welcome you back to the Capital City as he continues his leadership as Chancellor of Florida’s State University System!
Thursday, September 17, 2009 –Channel 13, Central Florida News
ORLANDO -- You can help give foster kids a fighting chance at success by becoming part of a new mentoring program in Central Florida. "I used to talk back, disrespect, not do my school work. I’d just tell you I wasn’t the type of person I am now," said Skyler, 12, a foster child who has spent nearly three years at the Great Oaks Village foster home in Orlando, describing himself before he met his mentor, Diana.
"She helps me with my behavior," said Skyler, whose real identity News 13 is not releasing because of his age. Skyler’s mentor is part of a new pilot program to help others just like Skyler.
"We see that children who receive mentoring are a third less likely to exhibit behavioral issues in school, such as bullying and fighting. They're about half as
likely to engage in substance abuse drugs and alcohol," said Bart Mawoussi, with Family Services of Metro Orlando.
The main goal of the pilot program is to help foster kids get their high school diploma. The hope is to match 60 kids in Orange and Osceola counties with a
mentor by November. Skyler said since he was matched with his mentor, he has straightened up, and can see a future for himself.
"I want to have two children, a big house, a nice red Camaro. I want to have a dog -- a bulldog that slobbers a lot," Skyler told News 13. Those that have mentored before said they get a fulfilling feeling. "You get to fill a role that there’s no one else to fill. There’s no family there," Mawoussi said. "It's a lasting connection that our mentors are beginning at this time."
To a 12-year-old who has had a hard time, it is a lifeline he never knew he had, and Skyler said he will always be grateful. "There's just something that changed me, I think just having someone to talk to," Skyler told News 13. "It's really helped me. She's a friend, a really good friend."
August 2009
Oped co-authors: former Florida Governor Jeb Bush and Steve Uhlfelder, Co-Chair Florida Mentoring Partnership and a member of the Education Policy Committee for the Obama Presidential Campaign
Ten years ago this month, the Governor’s Mentoring Initiative was born, fueled by a common desire to help students excel in school and life by recruiting compassionate adults to become their mentors. Today the initiative - now called the Florida Mentoring Partnership – remains solidly in place, improving young lives and helping to keep mentoring at the forefront of state education policy.
In 1999, as co-chairs of the new statewide initiative, we unleashed an aggressive call to action. With the support of Colin Powell, founder of America’s Promise, we announced a lofty goal – to recruit 200,000 caring adults who would commit an hour a week, mentoring a child.
We engaged every level of state government, even creating a new rule that allows state employees to spend one “paid” hour a week mentoring a child offering them much-needed support and encouragement. We took the concept still further, partnering with hundreds of local municipalities, businesses, nonprofits, individuals and schools to engage mentors as well.
We know through research that mentoring changes lives. Listen to what Steven McFarland tells us – a former mentee of then Lt. Governor Frank Brogan.
“Lucky! I had the chance to meet a man named Frank Brogan when I was in the 5th grade at Kate Sullivan Elementary. I knew nothing of Mr. Brogan being the Lieutenant Governor of the State of Florida, nor did I know that a simple handshake would begin to change my life forever. Mr. Brogan shook my hand in the 5th grade, and even through distance, has never let go. There are things in life that he educated me on that I will never forget; from basic study habits to morals and values I have today. When I think of mentoring, one hour can last a lifetime.”
As we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Florida Mentoring Partnership, we understand the push for new mentors is as important as ever. In fact, we are working to expand the mentoring program to include opportunities for children housed in foster group homes. Our goal is to provide young people, preparing to transition out of foster care, with a better chance at a successful life with the help of a mentor who can offer life skills guidance and a lasting and healthy support system. We are partnering with Family Services of Metro Orlando, Guardian ad Litem, and Educate Tomorrow, with plans to pilot the mentoring project at two Central Florida group homes this fall.
A 2007 study by Public/Private Ventures shows children who are mentored are:
- 46% less likely to have started using illegal drugs
- 27% less likely to have started using alcohol
- 32% fewer incidents of hitting someone in the previous 12 months
- Less likely to skip school
In the beginning, we wished out loud for a time when “mentoring” students was simply weaved into the fabric of our culture. Today, we believe that culture is now in place. We have achieved that once pie-in-the-sky goal – with 220,000 caring Floridians serving as active mentors today.
We remain just as passionate about growing the number of mentors in Florida because every day there are thousands of young people in great need of a strong role model. You can be that person – you can teach a child about self-esteem and model characteristics that will help them to lead a successful life.
While grateful for the compassion shown by so many mentors, as we approach 2010 the call to action remains the same – please be a mentor to a child in need. For more information about the Florida Mentoring Partnership, managed by Volunteer USA Foundation, please visit www.flamentoring.org.
The Florida Mentoring Partnership, in keeping with the state's pledge to America's Promise, helps students excel in school and life by recruiting Floridians to become mentors. This partnership, which began as the Governor's Mentoring Initiative in 1999, promotes collaboration among state agencies, municipalities, businesses, nonprofit organizations, individuals and schools.
The Partnership has formed an advocacy council that will work to keep mentoring at the forefront of state policy and statewide practice.
Governor’s Mentoring Initiative/Florida Mentoring Partnership
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