Be a Mentor

Dear School Supporters in Willamsburg-James City County,

As you know, the focus of SUPPORT SCHOOLS NOW has been to advocate for funding for WJC schools to ensure they have what they need to make sure our children receive the best education possible.

But appropriately funding our schools, while extremely important, is not the end, by any means, of what we can do to support our schools, and so many of you are already involved in our schools in wonderful ways.

Our superintendent, Dr. Gary Mathews, has challenged us again this year to make a difference in the lives of children "at-risk" by becoming mentors. Dr. Mathews has said that disadvantaged children often don't care about what you know, until they know you care. At a recent School Board meeting he also pointed out that research demonstrates how important mentors can be in helping children obtain direct experiences in building academic background knowledge to help them succeed.

In addition, children with mentors are much less likely to skip school, use drugs, skip class or use alcohol. If we can help steer kids away from these activities they can be better students and more successful people.

I started being a mentor last year with Big Brothers/Big Sisters in the school-based program which requires ONLY 1 HOUR PER WEEK during the school day. Time can be spent helping students with schoolwork or doing fun activities that can help create a bond between you and a student.

Working in the area with a flexible employer, I am able to continue being a mentor this year. If you can too, I invite you to call 253-0676 for an application. After completing an application there is an interview with a staff person from Big Brothers/Big Sisters and then two 1.5 hour training sessions.

For those of you who cannot make a commitment during the school day, BB/BS has a community-based program, through which you would be expected to meet with a child an average of 2-3hrs per week.

In either case, your involvement can help a child in our community that might otherwise fall through the cracks.

Unfortunately, despite the overwhelming research and BB/BS mentor training programs, a school board member insisted at a recent meeting that "we can't rely too heavily on that mentoring" because "we just cannot control the consistency."

But don't let this sentiment discourage you; in fact, allow it to inspire you to make a difference in the life of a child. Search your heart (and your calendar) to see if you can be a mentor so that there will be one less child left behind.

Sincerely,

Mike Ludwick
Support Schools Now
http://supportschoolsnow.org/