This Women’s History Month, we invite you to join us in reflecting on and lifting up the voices and victories of women, especially women of color. There are so many brave change-makers past and present who have stories to tell and wisdom to share as we forge ahead in the fight for gender and racial equity. Looking for some inspiration? Check out this feed of short but energizing videos from women who know the power of a quality mentor. See below for opportunities centered on empowering girls in STEM, and check out our Facebook page for spotlights on programs that are empowering girls throughout Virginia.
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Resources for Talking to Youth About Racial Injustice & Promoting Equity
The trial for Derek Chauvin, the police officer who murdered George Floyd last summer, will be starting in the coming weeks. We acknowledge that this may evoke difficult feelings and conversations about racial equity to the surface for many mentees, mentors, and the program staff who support them. Below are a selection of resources we hope will be helpful.
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Webinar: Reconnecting Opportunity Youth
Thurs. 3/18 @ 1 - 2:15 pm
Join MENTOR and the Collaborative Mentoring Webinar Series for a robust conversation on mentoring strategies and proven pathways to boost health, education, and career outcomes for Opportunity Youth.
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Young Women & STEM Leadership Panels
Tues. 3/23 @ 4 - 6 pm
Join two powerful conversations: 1) with career women in the STEM field about their journeys, challenges and triumphs
2) hear from young women pursuing STEM careers and how they are making it happen!
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Virtual New Mentor Training
Tues. 3/30 @ 6 - 7:30 pm
Join MENTOR Virginia for a virtual New Mentor Training covering the roles of a mentor, boundary-setting, positive youth development, stages of a mentoring relationship, communication techniques, problem-solving strategies, & more.
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April Community Coffee Hour
Wed. 4/12 @ 9 - 10 am
Grab your coffee/tea, and join your mentoring program peers and MENTOR Virginia for Community Coffee Hour! In April, we will discuss Building Pipelines for Targeted Mentor Recruitment.
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Best Practices for Recruiting STEM Mentors
Tues. 4/13 @ 10 am - 12 pm
Are you a mentoring program struggling to recruit STEM- focused mentors? Join this discussion about best practices and the where, when, and how to recruit STEM mentors!
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Role Models Training for STEM Volunteers
Tues. 4/13, 4 - 5 pm
In this webinar, Techbridge Girls Inc. will explore three strategies for connecting to and preparing role models to work with youth including how to use culturally relevant youth development practices for STEM exploration.
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Which Best Describes You Today: Mind Full or Mindful? |
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Join us for a Day of Well-being!
MENTOR Virginia is partnering with BareSOUL Yoga for a day dedicated to practicing mindfulness on Sunday, 4/18. This virtual event will offer eight accessible sessions for individuals and families that will be led by experts. Sessions will focus on yoga, breathwork, meditation, mindfulness, and movement.
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The Power of Youth Challenge provides young people (ages 13-19) across the U.S. with the opportunity to identify a need in their communities related to racial healing and apply for a $250 grant to support a (COVID-safe) youth-designed and youth-led service project. Project ideas are due by 4/30!
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Policy Affecting Youth, Families, & Youth-Serving Programs |
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It has been an incredible couple of weeks for federal policy, particularly where it relates to supporting youth and families. On March 11, President Biden signed the stimulus bill and the American Rescue Plan (ARP) into law. There will be more information to come on how these policies will impact mentoring programs and the youth and families being served by them. |
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Jean Rhodes of The Chronicle of Evidence-Based Mentoring offers analysis on the historic scope of the anti-poverty efforts included in the stimulus bill and what that means for mentoring programs. |
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The Afterschool Alliance gives a breakdown of what is in the ARP and how that will benefit afterschool and summer learning programs. |
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Applications for Federal Mentoring Grant Funds
The Office of Juvenile Justice & Delinquency Prevention is currently the only source of federal funding to support mentoring programs. Their funding opportunities for FY 2021 are open and accepting applications.
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Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth Tobacco Prevention Funding
Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth has announced a new round of three-year Tobacco Prevention funding. Contract Period: July 1, 2021 – June 30, 2024. A total of up to $8,280,000 is available over three years ($2,760,000 annually) to prevent and reduce youth tobacco, nicotine, and vaping product use across Virginia. Online proposals are due by March 22, 2021 (5:00 pm).
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