Helping Urban Youth Move From Birth To Work - A Network Building Strategy

Creating a Network of Purpose:
Helping Inner-City Youth from Birth to Work:

A Networking Strategy
Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC Tutor/Mentor Connection, Merchandise Mart PO Box 3303, Chicago, Il 60654
tutormentor2@earthlink.net http://www.tutormentorexchange.net http://www.tutormentorconnection.org
Pg 1
The goal of the Tutor/Mentor Connection (T/MC)* is to connect inner
city teens with adults who will act as tutors, mentors, coaches, advocates
and friends in structured programs that encourages many of these adults
to stay involved in the lives of kids for many years.
The long term goal is that our teens finish high school and that our
volunteers help open doors to advanced learning, jobs and careers. In
such programs, volunteers also must learn to take on roles of leaders,
fund raisers, advocates, etc. so that programs constantly expand the
resources available to them.
Dan Bassill, founder of T/MC operated a volunteer- based tutor/mentor program
“Cabrini Connections played in Chicago for more than 35 years. 520 teens and 700 volunteers have
a major role in my life during participated for 1 to 7 full years since 1993. On this page are some of our
my high school years.” alumni.
Marquita Hall (l) 2004 college
graduate; with sister, Alicia Hall, *In July 2011 the Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC was created to innovate new ways
who attends Northeastern to support the T/MC in Chicago and help similar strategies grow in other cities.
Illinois University.
“Maurice has his GED and now

“Isaiah graduated from Bradley University in 2001 works in construction...”
“Monique left for Howard University last thanks to Mike Mazucca who has
and now works for Westwood College..” Isaiah was
week, where she has a FULL RIDE been part of his life for more than
a keynote speaker at a 2008 Tutor/Mentor 10 years, and to Tom Li, another
SCHOLARSHIP.”
Conference in Chicago and in Nov. 2010 led a fund CC volunteer who helped set up
Message from Joey Molenda who was
raising effort to help raise money to support Cabrini a job interview for Maurice at a
Monique’s tutor/mentor for six years.
Connections. He’s one of more than 100 alumni company where he now works.
connected to via Facebook.
Pg. 2
Property of Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC and Tutor/Mentor Connection, Email for permission to use: tutormentor2@earthlink.net
While we operated a single tutor/mentor program in one neighborhood...
Cabrini
Chicago Connections We created the Tutor/Mentor
serves teens in the
Cabrini-Green area
of Chicago. This
Connection (T/MC) in 1993 to
program was where
T/MC idea
help programs like Cabrini
originated in 1993.
Connections grow in every
poverty neighborhood of the
Tutor/Mentor city and suburbs of Chicago.
Connection
helps programs
like Cabrini Using the Internet, the T/MC is now
Connections connected to organizations throughout the
grow in every
poverty area of world, and is helping tutor/mentor
the city and programs, and citywide networks grow in
suburbs Chicago and other cities.
Every major city in the country has areas of

high poverty. The larger the city the bigger
the bureaucracy and the more isolated high
poverty neighborhoods become. Through
the Internet we can connect people from
many cities in a network focused on
expanding the social capital for youth in
these neighborhoods by helping volunteer-
based tutor/mentor programs grow.
Pg. 3
The Tutor/Mentor Connection focuses
daily on one big questions:
What will it take to

assure that
all youth born in
poverty are entering
careers by age 25?
What does it take to make

mentor-rich non-school
programs available to more
youth, in more places?
Since 2011 the T/MC has been part of Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC. Same goals. Different tax structure.
Pg 4
We know others are asking the same question….
The T/MC seeks to connect people and groups who are

already spending many hours doing research and
innovating ways to help kids to careers, into one on-
going tutor/mentor learning network.
In such a network people and organizations can share

ideas, learn from others, create collaborations, and can
apply new ideas and resources at any time to their own
efforts to help kids in their own community.
Dan Bassill participation in on-line forums is part of the

T/MC network-building strategy.
Pg 5
All kids grow on the same 25
year timeline:
School-Time Programs
High Career
Pre-K K - 5th 5th - 6th 6th - 8th
School Track
3-5 PM Non-School Programs After 5 PM and Weekend Programs
From birth to starting a career, takes about 25 years for

most kids. There are well defined stages along the way.
For kids living in concentrated, inner-city poverty, there are

extra challenges to reaching careers.
Pg 6
We use maps and charts to create visual understanding
• The light pink shaded areas
have poverty rates of 20% and
above.
• Poverty rates in the dark red
areas are 40% and above.
• Icons on this map are schools

placed on the Illinois State
Warning list in November 2009.
• Other icons show locations of
known non-school tutoring
and/or mentoring programs.
• Children growing up in these

CHICAGO neighborhoods need extra
adults to help them reach Pg 7
careers.
Http://www.tutormentorexchange.net tutormentor2@earthlink.net
These are just a few of the questions that need to
be answered to to achieve this goal:
How do we help good programs be in more of the

places where they are needed?
How do we help each program have effective, long-

term leaders?
How do we increase the number of volunteers from

different work backgrounds who get involved, and
stay involved for many years?
How do we provide consistent, flexible, multi-year

funding in all locations, not just a few?
Pg 8
How do we get
individuals, and
teams of people from
colleges, business,
media, education,
arts, etc. thinking
about this every day?
How do we connect those who
are already deliberating and
discussing these questions in
ways share knowledge and
good ideas and encourage
others to be involved?
Pg 9
Tutor/Mentor Connection (T/MC)
A Strategy That Can Be Duplicated in Any City
Since 1993 we have been building a Chicago area

network of programs and supporters and a
nationwide network of knowledge centers.
We call this a
Tutor/Mentor Learning Network (TMLN). We host the
information we share in a Tutor/Mentor Institute
library.
This strategy has never been well funded or consistently supported in

Chicago. Since 2011 it’s been supported by the Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC.
The following slides show the steps we’ve taken to create this network. As you
review this, imagine how much greater impact you could have if you had full
support of civic leaders, business and philanthropy in your city.
Pg 10
Step 1: Build and Maintain knowledge base
Information Collection
Prior to 1993, no organization
was attempting to maintain a
comprehensive database of non-
school tutor/mentor programs.
http://tinyurl.com/TMI-library
The T/MC Chicago programs database

and web site Program Locator now
includes most tutor/mentor programs in
the Chicago area, as well as lists of
potential resource providers.
Step 1 of 4-Part Strategy
Database Web library also includes LINKS to
(see Program Locator at
http://www.tutormentorprogramlocator.net more than 2000 other organizations
working to help kids succeed in school
and move to careers. See map of
library at http://tinyurl.com/TMI-library
Pg 11
What types of organizations? Who needs to be
involved?
Pre Elementary Middle High College or
School School School School Vocational
Family Birth A child Industry
Mentors Career
and Tutors
Church Travel,
Internet
After Arts,
School Sports,
Programs Recreation
For most children, their Birth to Age 25 support system looks like this. Neighbors, family,
and a variety of community supports model education as a path to careers, while opening
doors and providing learning experiences as youth grow up.
This is an informal network and it works for most kids.

Pg 12
The Support System for Kids in Poverty is Different
than for middle and upper income kids.

living in
Career
poverty
Church Travel,
Internet
After Arts,
School Sports,
Programs Recreation
Youth living in neighborhoods of concentrated, segregated, inner city poverty

have less of these positive learning influences .
While the church is a factor, many church groups do not have a diversity of
workplace volunteers, and many who do have diverse congregations, do not
have strategies to mentor neighborhood children to careers.
Pg 13
More Negative Role Models
Ill legal jobs

living in
Career
Gangs poverty Welfare
Ex Offenders Travel,
Internet
Arts,
Church After Sports,
School Recreation
Programs
Along with fewer positive influences, there are far more negative influences in communities
with high concentrations of people in poverty, living on welfare, and working in illegal jobs.
For many kids the most common role model is a man with a fancy car, flashy jewelry, new
clothes, a wad of money, and many girl friends. All of this was earned through illegal work,
such as selling drugs. For many other kids the role model is an ex-offender.
Pg 14
As a Result, Schools Struggle. The Prison system grows.
Prison, Juvenile Homes
Ill legal jobs

living in
Career
Gangs poverty Welfare
Ex Offenders Travel,
Internet
After Arts,
School Sports,
Church
Programs Recreation
As a result youth go to school un prepared to learn and with few adult models showing the
value of education for jobs and careers. Schools struggle. High School drop out rates exceed
35%. Many careers are learned while in prison or in the juvenile justice system. Few youth go
to college and too few of these graduate.
Pg 15
Each of these boxes represent HUBS of
knowledge in the TMLN
No Child Left Behind; Federal Juvenile Justice, Workforce Training Programs, etc..

Crime
National Service prevention

living in
Career Civic Engagement
Service poverty
Learning
Volunteerism
Mentoring Welfare Reform
Tutoring Youth
After School Development
Programs Church Workforce
Development
Each box represents a category of people and organizations working to help youth grow up
safely, succeed in school, and be prepared for 21 st Century jobs and careers. By connecting
them in a Learning Network, we create greater opportunities for understanding, collaboration,
and capacity building in every neighborhood where kids need help.
Pg 16
A web blueprint should show what supports youth
need, and what is available in different zip codes.
See this Mentoring Kids to Careers Blueprint - http://tinyurl.com/TMI-K-CareerMentoring

Pg 17
These two graphics show the ideas on page 16 and 17 in a different way.
Every youth
requires a network
of supports as
he/she grows up.
Youth in high poverty areas won’t have

the same network unless efforts are made
to create and sustain it for many years.
Pg 18
Step 2: Volunteer Mobilization: Advertising
Because the T/MC maintains a
database with contact
information for most tutor/mentor
programs in Chicago…
a) The T/MC is able to lead advertising and
View at public education efforts that recruit
https://youtu.be/C0ieJRBrk_I volunteers and donors for more than 100
other programs throughout the Chicago
region.
b) As these volunteers bond with kids, many

will help build better programs, the same
way that Cabrini Connections volunteers
Volunteer Mobilization have helped build the T/MC from 1993-2011
Database
c) This increases the number of adults,
businesses and churches that are involved.
Pg 19
Step. 3 Build network of leaders.
A successful collaboration or
partnership is built on trust
and mutual self-interest.
From 1994-2015 the T/MC and
Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC led an annual
sequence of capacity-building actions that
drew more than 300 programs together for
regular knowledge sharing, resource
building.
These actions are essential for building
trust and relationships.
Building a network of No other organization brings so many of the
tutor/mentor leaders same programs together as often from year
Volunteer Mobilization to year. Without the regular invitations from
the T/MC, and the constant information
Database
sharing, most organizations would remain
isolated from each other.
Property of Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC and Tutor/Mentor Connection, Email for permission to use: tutormentor2@earthlink.net Pg 20
Step 4: Information sharing
Building Better Understanding
of Needs, Opportunities
By bringing programs together on a

regular basis, and by supporting this
process with surveys and an Internet
library of tutor/mentor information,
T/MC seeks to create a better
understanding of what works, who/how
Building Better
Understanding of Needs, many are being served, where
Opportunities
programs are needed, and what it takes
Building a network of to help good programs be in every
tutor/mentor leaders place where they are needed.
Volunteer Mobilization
The T/MC has never had funds to do all of the
Database research that needs to be done, and seeks
partnership with universities to do this.
OUR GOAL: SUPPORT THE
GROWTH OF TOTAL QUALITY To SUCCEED
MENTORING PROGRAMS THAT We must recruit business
leaders who will use their
HELP INNER CITY YOUTH REACH resources in PULLING
CAREERS Youth to Careers
High Career
School Track
The visualizations on this and the next three

pages are additional ways to illustrate a
To SUCCEED
We must help tutor/mentor long-term commitment needed to support
program leaders, volunteers, youth living in high poverty areas.
schools and parents be more
effective in PUSHING
Youth to Careers
SHARING RESPONSIBILITY
To finish school and
Programs serving youth in one age level, enter a career…
…youth who participate in
or one time frame, can do better work if great K-8 programs still need
the child comes to them better prepared. support to finish high school,
college and to enter careers.
High Career
School Track
EXAMPLE
These are feeder programs. If A program serving 5th and 6th grade
kids is able to do more if programs
kids have access to good K-5 serving the SAME kids in K-5 have laid
programs they will perform better a reading/math learning/motivation
in 5th and 6th grade and high foundation.
school programs.
Pg 23
THE GOAL IS NOT TO FINISH 6TH GRADE. IT’S TO REACH A CAREER.
Every program serving youth on this

time line needs volunteers, dollars,
technology, etc.
High Career
School Track
Agencies that help each other do

more to help kids stay in school
and reach careers.
Instead of competing for resources, the T/MC
seeks to help programs work together to increase
the availability of resources for all tutor/mentor
programs.
Pg 24
Networking Strategy
As a small non profit, T/MC* has never had the advertising budgets
of large corporations. Thus, it relies on an on-going networking
strategy to draw people together, and to build awareness of
tutoring/mentoring.
* The Tutor/Mentor Institute LLC was created in 2011 in an effort to expand the ways
money and partnerships are formed to support this strategy.
Pg 25
The World’s Largest
Ping Pong ball table.
This shows the power

each individual and
organization has.
Every action of the

T/MC or a member of
the T/MC Learning
Network, causes a
chain reaction that
moves every other ball.
Pg 26
This is an on-going, year-to-year growth process
Aug/Sept May Conferences

November Jan. National
Chicagoland Conferences Mentoring
Volunteer Month; Feb.
Recruitment Leadership
Campaign
Development
Beginning in 1994 the T/MC developed a year-round event calendar intended

to help programs recruit volunteers in Aug/Sept. and help programs train
those volunteers and convert them into leaders as each program moves
through the School year. As each program ends the year it has more people
helping it build capacity and quality for the following year.
By repeating this call to involvement each year from 1994-2011, we created

greater public awareness of tutoring/mentoring, and greater traffic to web
sites of the Tutor/Mentor Learning Network.
Since 2015 these events have not been hosted by T/MC in Chicago, but the
strategies continue to be supported on social media.
Pg 27
The T/MC has been committed to using the
Internet to network and learn since 1998
• Blogs – like http://tutormentor.blogspot.com
• Forums – http://tutormentorconnection.ning.com
• Conferences– 1994-2015
http://www.tutormentorconference.org
• Online collaboration spaces like
http://debategraph.org/mentoring_kids_to_careers
• Social media such as LinkedIn, Twitter and
http://www.facebook.com/TutorMentorInstitute
• At http://www.tutormentorconnection.org we’re
hosting a links library, with links to organizations
that we want to connect with
At www.Google.com you can search for “tutor mentor”
and find the T/MC and numerous other organizations
who could be invited to come together for networking,
This Debategraph forum can learning, collaboration
connect people from
throughout the world. Visit http://tutormentor.blogspot.com and read articles
about MOOCs and Learning. We continue to see partners
who will help organize on-line learning and collaboration
events.
Pg 28
At T/MC web sites we link to organizations that
represent specific areas of expertise. We call these
“hubs”
Fund Raising
T/MC Web Site
Volunteer
Recruitment
Tutoring
info
These hubs are often in different

cities, and even different countries!
Pg 29
As HUBs link to each other more knowledge is
shared...
Hub
Hub
Many of the
websites we point
to from the
Hub Tutor/Mentor
library are also
hubs of
information.
…and greater traffic circulates to

each organization in the network
Pg 30
ALL of these groups
Create a Learning Network need to be involved
in helping kids
family Faith
succeed in school
schools groups and move to jobs
and careers.
Law
Business
orgs
Birth America’s
Youth
Career
Higher
Gov’t
Ed.
Health
Social Care
Philanthropy
Service Community
& Volunteers
orgs
Pg 31
AND each group
Connecting HUBS: A Blueprint needs to be
connected to each
family Faith
other, in an on-going
schools groups learning process.
Law
Business
orgs & Media
Birth America’s
Youth
Career
Higher
Gov’t
Ed.
Health
Entertainment Care
Community Philanthropy
& Sports orgs; social & Volunteers
service
Pg 32
This can lead to shared efforts to increase visibility
and draw more volunteers and donors to every
tutor/mentor program in the Chicago area as school
starts every year in Aug/Sept.
TMI Goal - Increase Funding Stream -

http://tinyurl.com/TMIGoal-FundingStream
Pg 33
Step 5: Actions that increase flow of resources
Using the map, and the database,
leaders can stimulate a flow of
resources to all programs, in all
neighborhoods.
By working as a group, T/MC helps

programs generate greater impact than
Actions that increase the most programs could generate by
flow of resources to each
program themselves.
Building Better This is intended to draw volunteers, dollars,

Understanding of Needs,
public attention, technology and training
Opportunities directly to tutor/mentor programs in every
Building a network of
neighborhood.
tutor/mentor leaders
Volunteer Mobilization Without a steady flow of these resources
no program can succeed.
Database
All Tutor/Mentor Programs have
Common Needs
* volunteers
* public visibility
* operating dollars
* technology
* training/learning
* evaluation tools/staff
WE SEEK TO DRAW RESOURCE TO EVERY PROGRAM IN EVERY
POVERTY NEIGHBORHOOD.
The Tutor/ Mentor

Connection seeks
LEADERS to help raise
and distribute needed
resources to every
tutor/mentor program in
the city and suburbs of
Chicago.
This could be a map of New York City,

Cleveland, Houston, Detroit, etc. This
strategy can be borrowed and adopted,
with help from the Tutor/Mentor
Institute, LLC
Pg 36
Goal: Great programs
and learning supports
in all neighborhoods.
Using maps, databases and

interactive web sites a city can
help attract volunteers and
donors to all neighborhoods with
high poverty.
See this at https://tinyurl.com/ProgramLocatorMap-archive

Since 2013 the Program Locator has not been fully functional. This link points to an archived version of
the working website. Consider this a model for what you could build, or consider partnering with
Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC to upgrade this for your own use.
Pg 37
Each of these boxes represent INDUSTRIES
who need to be involved in the TMLN
Until we put names of individuals or organizations in each box, we won’t have the
leadership needed to mobilize volunteers and donors who go from an industry out to
all tutor/mentor programs in a big city like Chicago.
Retail,
Communications Wholesale
Family Support Birth A child Youth Development

living in Hospitality,
Career
Technology poverty Entertainment
Manufacturing
Science,
Engineering
Finance,Insurance
Arts, Higher
Health Care Religion, Education
Ethics Culture Law, Justice
Students join a With the help of volunteers With the help of

Tutor/Mentor and structured programs, mentors, they start
Program between 1st they finish high school jobs and careers.
and 12th grade.
Pg 38
When business, faith and political leaders use their visibility, advertising and
influence to encourage people to volunteer, or donate, to a tutor/mentor
program, we increase the number of volunteers and donors at every
tutor/mentor program in the Chicago area…or in any other city.
We also lower the costs for each organization to acquire these resources, and
help organizations keep leaders and key staff longer.
Pg 39
Step 6: The result of Steps 1 to 5
Better programs in more
places for more age groups
As a result of the previous steps,

places for more age groups Chicago, and other major cities,
Actions that increase the
begins to have more effective
flow of resources to each tutor/mentor programs serving
program
more youth in more
Building Better
Understanding of Needs, neighborhoods.
Opportunities
Duplicate this in your city!
Volunteer Mobilization While this strategy has not been funded in Chicago
since 2011, it’s a template that you could use to
Database
create your own systems of support, without starting
from the beginning.
Step 7: The Result
If Step 1 to 5 are happening in every
More youth stay in school, are poverty neighborhood, youth and families
safe in non-school hours,
will have access to more of the help they
graduate, and move to careers
need, better programs, and more consistent,
longer-term services.
places for more age groups This will begin to achieve the changes in
Actions that increase the school performance and career preparation
flow of resources to each that we all want:
program
Building Better
• better attendance in school
Opportunities • lower drop out rates
• less youth violence
• better academic performance
• business reports better prepared
Database workers
Step 8: Long Term
THE RESULT
More youth stay in school, are
Commitment
This SUCCESS is not achieved

places for more age groups in one or two years.
Building Better
It will never be achieved without
Opportunities
Actions that increase the
the work done at the base of this
flow of resources to each pyramid each year.
program
tutor/mentor leaders Since 2011 articles on the Stanford
Social Innovation Review (SSIR) site
have been describing the organization
Database doing this work as a “backbone”
organization.
THE RESULT
More youth stay in school, are
This is T/MC
Theory of Change
Become part of the this network of
Better programs in more purpose.
places for more age groups
Building Better Visit these sites:

http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
Opportunities
Actions that increase the http://www.tutormentorconnection.org
flow of resources to each http://tutormentor.blogspot.com
program http://mappingforjustice.blogspot.com
http://tutormentorconnection.ning.com
http://www.twitter.com/tutormentorteam
Volunteer Mobilization If you host a similar forum, add your
Database LINK to the T/MC web library.
Tutor/Mentor Connection: A Theory of Change
proposed by the Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC
“If this (initiative) is accepted and acted upon in any city, including
Chicago, it can change the way philanthropy and charities work
together in America and throughout the world. It can change the
future for millions of kids born into poverty each year.”
--Daniel F. Bassill, President of Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC and the Tutor/Mentor Connection
Http://www.tutormentorexchange.net tutormentor2@earthlink.net Twitter @tutormentorteam

Helping Urban Youth Move From Birth To Work - A Network Building Strategy

Uploaded by

Document Information

Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Description:

Copyright:

Available Formats

Helping Urban Youth Move From Birth To Work - A Network Building Strategy

Original Title:

Uploaded by

Description:

Copyright:

Available Formats

Creating a Network of Purpose:

Helping Inner-City Youth from Birth to Work:

“Maurice has his GED and now

Every major city in the country has areas of

What will it take to

What does it take to make

The T/MC seeks to connect people and groups who are

In such a network people and organizations can share

Dan Bassill participation in on-line forums is part of the

3-5 PM Non-School Programs After 5 PM and Weekend Programs

From birth to starting a career, takes about 25 years for

For kids living in concentrated, inner-city poverty, there are

• Icons on this map are schools

• Children growing up in these

How do we help good programs be in more of the

How do we help each program have effective, long-

How do we increase the number of volunteers from

How do we provide consistent, flexible, multi-year

Since 1993 we have been building a Chicago area

This strategy has never been well funded or consistently supported in

The T/MC Chicago programs database

Family Birth A child Industry

This is an informal network and it works for most kids.

Family Birth A child Industry

Youth living in neighborhoods of concentrated, segregated, inner city poverty

Family Birth A child Industry

Ill legal jobs

Family Birth A child Industry

Pre Elementary Middle High College or

Family Birth A child Industry

See this Mentoring Kids to Careers Blueprint - http://tinyurl.com/TMI-K-CareerMentoring

Youth in high poverty areas won’t have

b) As these volunteers bond with kids, many

By bringing programs together on a

3-5 PM Non-School Programs After 5 PM and Weekend Programs

The visualizations on this and the next three

3-5 PM Non-School Programs After 5 PM and Weekend Programs

Every program serving youth on this

3-5 PM Non-School Programs After 5 PM and Weekend Programs

Agencies that help each other do

This shows the power

Every action of the

Aug/Sept May Conferences

Beginning in 1994 the T/MC developed a year-round event calendar intended

By repeating this call to involvement each year from 1994-2011, we created

T/MC Web Site

These hubs are often in different

…and greater traffic circulates to

TMI Goal - Increase Funding Stream -

By working as a group, T/MC helps

Building Better This is intended to draw volunteers, dollars,

The Tutor/ Mentor

This could be a map of New York City,

Using maps, databases and

See this at https://tinyurl.com/ProgramLocatorMap-archive

Family Support Birth A child Youth Development

Students join a With the help of volunteers With the help of

As a result of the previous steps,

This SUCCESS is not achieved