The May 2009 Tutor/Mentor Leadership and Networking Conference

This May 2009 Tutor/Mentor Leadership and Networking Conference marked our 31st conference and our 15th year of doing conferences. For me, it was my third May Conference and my fifth conference overall.

Every conference has been different - my first May Conference was in 2007 (photo at right), just after I had been hired on at Cabrini Connections, Tutor/Mentor Connection. I'm so glad that I went to the conference because I learned so much in those two days and met people from other programs at that conference, that I still collaborate with today. I was just beginning to grasp the concept of what tutoring and mentoring was and what the conference was all about and everything was new and overwhelming for me.

The November 2007 Conference (photo at left) was my first conference as an actual employee at Cabrini Connections, Tutor/Mentor Connection. I was given the task of leading a panel about volunteer recruitment and was so nervous. Fortunately, Alex Cornwell of Chicago Lights at Fourth Presbyterian Church and Erin McPartlin of Cabrini-Green Tutoring were kind enough to serve on the panel and share their wisdom and expertise. We had a really good discussion in that panel and I made a lot of great connections with people who I had not worked with before.

The first conference that I was mostly in charge of planning was the May 2008 Conference (photo below).I remember how stressed I was going in to that conference. The main thing I learned was that no matter what technological or logistical difficulties there were, people still were having a great time learning and networking.

The November 2008 Conference (photo below) was significant in that I learned the power of this blog. Because my friend Julie Nygaard, who works at the Field Museum, reads this blog, she helped me through the necessary steps to secure the Field Museum as our site for the November Conference. I also learned how to bring people together in panels showcasing their strengths and knowledge, because we only had one day to do the conference and we wanted to expose participants to a wide range of views and experiences from different programs.

Finally, there was the May 2009 Conference (photo below). Overall, I'd say this was my favorite conference by far. There was a wonderful positive energy that flowed through the conference, despite the background of a troubled economy. I had more people come up to me and tell me what a great time they were having, how much they were enjoying the speakers and workshops, and how grateful they were that there is a conference like this so people can come together and work together to help at-risk youth succeed.

If you catch a theme about what my thoughts were coming out of all five of the conferences that I attended, it probably is something along the lines of building networks of people who you can collaborate with in the future. In a nutshell, that's what I think the conference is all about. If you go to the Tutor/Mentor Exchange, you can read articles about all kinds of issues relating to starting and maintaining a quality tutoring and mentoring program. One of the many sections in the site relates to collaboration and capacity building, which is what the conference is all about. There you can read about "building networks of purpose," which I think is one of the major accomplishments that everybody who attends the conference comes out of the conference with. Especially in tough economic times like these, people needs a strong network to rely on, to learn from, to grow with, and to give back to themselves. I hope that everybody who attended the May Conference felt that their network of purpose grew and strengthened and that they felt energized and hopeful about their programs going into the summer.

I can't wait for the November Tutor/Mentor Leadership and Networking Conference, which will be held Thursday and Friday November 19th and 20th at Norris University Center at Northwestern University, in Evanston, IL. Even though that's six months away, planning and collaborating is starting now. If you would like to help out with the November Conference, please leave a comment on this post and I'll contact you about what you can do to make the November Conference a success!

Come to the Cabrini Connections Year-End Dinner!

As the Tutor/Mentor Connection Research and Networking Coordinator, I reach out to other tutoring and mentoring programs and find out more about them - what they're doing right and where they can improve. However, one of the things I miss about my time as the Assistant Program Coordinator, during my Northwestern Public Interest Program Fellowship is interacting with our Cabrini Connections kids. That's why I love supervising the art club, and events such as our Year-End Dinner.

This Thursday June 4th, you too can meet our amazing Cabrini Connections kids at our Year-End Dinner. It's from 6-8pm at Cornerstone Community Center, 1111 N. Wells, Chicago, IL. At the year-end dinner, we will be showing a video about what Cabrini Connections is all about. The video was made by our Student Advisory Council and includes interviews with Dan Bassill, our President and CEO, Cabrini Connections alumni, Cabrini-Green community members, and longtime volunteers. Enjoy!

Another great Tutor/Mentor Conference

It's June 1st, which means the May 2009 Tutor/Mentor Conference has come and gone. Overall, I'd say it was a great success, with many people commenting on what a good time they were having, what great connections they were making, and how helpful and interesting the workshop and speakers are. Our three new interns from South Korea took photos during the concert, which are shown below in the slide show. Enjoy!

Find more photos like this on Tutor/Mentor Connection

Tutor/Mentor Conference is TOMORROW

Hello Everyone! TOMORROW, Thursday May 28th is the first day of the May Tutor/Mentor Leadership and Networking Conference. It's going to be held at Northwestern School of Law, 375 E. Chicago Ave. Registration is from 8-9am and there will be breakfast available in the lobby beforehand.

You can still register for the conference and get the early registration fee of $60 for one day, $100 for two days. If you come in tomorrow without registering, the price is $75, but we are giving scholarships to people in need because we want as many people as possible come to the conference. Even if you can come for a half-day, or just lunchtime, it's still worth it to come!

It's going to be a great time! Tomorrow, there will be workshops on volunteer recruitment, student recruitment, fundraising, grant-writing, and you will also hear from the owner of the Hyde Park Hair Salon, the Official Barbershop of President Barack Obama.

We hope to see you tomorrow at the conference.

Chicago Youth Centers - Mentoring at Price School

In my travels throughout the city, in order to visit tutoring and mentoring programs, I have visited Evanston, the Near North Side, Avondale, the Loop, Bucktown, Lincoln Park, Rogers Park, Pilsen, North Lawndale, Wicker Park, West Town, Humboldt Park, and the Near West Side. These neighborhoods compromise parts of the North, Northwest, and West Side neighborhoods. In evaluating where I had visited, I realized I had seriously been neglecting visiting programs on the South Side. This was a thing that needed to be remedied - not just because it would expand the scope of my visits, but also because it would shift my focus to an area that has high levels of poverty and is in great need of more tutoring and mentoring programs.

Fortunately, in my efforts to reach out to other tutoring and mentoring programs to come to the May Tutor/Mentor Leadership and Networking Conference, I heard back from Christy Beigh-Byrne, the Director of Mentor and Volunteer Services at Chicago Youth Centers-Elliott Donnelly Center. She invited me to visit their school-based mentoring program at Price Elementary School in Bronzeville.

Chicago Youth Centers operates a variety of programs throughout the city. Chris Warren and I had already visited ABC Polk Brothers Center in North Lawndale, where they have a variety of programs. Elliott Donnelly Center, which is located in Bronzeville as well, has a variety of programs that operate out of their center on South Michigan Ave., but also has a mentoring program run out of Price Elementary School.

Chicago Youth Centers teams up with CPS high schools and Chicago-area universities in order to find mentors, who are able to come in during the after-school hours of 3-4:15 in order to mentor the students. I spoke to mentors who went to UIC and Northesastern Illinois, and both of them were very enthusiastic about working with their students. For this program, mentors means more tutor-mentors in a similar model to the one we use here at Cabrini Connections. Fourth-Sixth Grade students go around to different stations with their tutor/mentors: spelling, reflection, homework help, and math. At the end of the session, students gather in a circle and discuss what went well in the session and what needs to be worked on. I was really impressed with how self-reflective all the students were, knowing what their weaknesses were but also knowing to celebrate their strengths.

While both the students and mentors told Chris and me that they were having an "off day," Chris and I were very impressed with the level of dedication of the mentors and the students. Our only thought would be to extend the mentoring session for another hour simply so the students and tutors have more time together. Thanks to Christy for inviting us down to Bronzeville!

Community Building Tutors and Making the Career Change from the For-Profit Sector to the Non-Profit

This past Tuesday, I ventured out to Fosco Park, near the University of Illiniois at Chicago campus, in the Near-West Side neighborhood, to visit the new Community Building Tutors program there. Community Building Tutors is a non-profit founded and run by young professionals that trains high schoolers to be tutors to the elementary schoolers in their community. The hope is that these high schoolers, in taking an interest in helping those younger than themselves, will begin to see themselves as leaders in their communities and to take pride in where they come from.

There are three sites currently offering tutoring through Community Building Tutors: Fosco Park, Chase Park up in Ravenswood, and Willye White Park up in Rogers Park. Holstein Park in Bucktown, has also been a site in the past, and will be a site for the 2009-2010 school year as well. Fosco Park is the newest site, having just started three weeks ago. Even though the students in the program are relatively new to a structured tutoring program, they already seemed very enthusiastic, eager to learn, and excited to work with their tutors. As mentioned before, at the other programs, high schoolers tutor the elementary school students. However, the program at Fosco Park is still trying to recruit high school students to be tutors. For now, the program has had to rely on friends of Bart Phillips, the founder and President of the Board of Community Building Tutors and UIC students.

Which brings me to the next topic - talking about one of the workshops that we are going to offer at the May Tutor/Mentor Leadership and Networking Conference. Bart Phillips, and other Community Building Tutors board members spoke at the last May conference (shown in the photos) about their program. This year, on Thursday May 28th, from 1:45-3:00pm, Bart Phillips is going to talk about the topic of transitioning from working in the for-profit world, in the field of medical research, to running his own tutoring program. This is a very timely topic, with the tough economic climate, as many professionals have had to re-evaluate their career choices. Hopefully, Bart's story and wisdom will be of help and inspiration to everyone who comes to the conference.

Thanks to Bart, his dedicated tutors, his enthusiastic students for making me feel welcome at Fosco Park and letting me win in a very heated game of Uno at the end!

The Tutor/Mentor Leadership and Networking Conference is in four weeks!

Hello Everyone! My apologies for not having updated the blog last week. What I was doing last week was trying to reach out to my networks to increase attendance for the May Tutor/Mentor Leadership and Networking Conference - which is in less than FOUR WEEKS.

Just to remind everybody - the conference will be held Thursday and Friday May 28th and 29th at Northwestern School of Law, 375 E. Chicago Ave. Registration will be from 8-9am on Thursday and 8-8:45am on Friday. Breakfast will also be provided during that time. Admission to the conference is $60 for one day, $100 for both days, and $75 for walk-ins. You can register for the conference here.

If you would like to present a workshop, you can submit a workshop presenter's form here.

We already have some great workshops planned. Over the next couple of weeks I will highlight the different workshops that we have planned and let you know a little about the presenters and their organization. Stay tuned for that and get excited about the conference!