“So, we truly believe that all students deserve a mentor.”
Lauren Enos is Program and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Director at Affinity Mentoring, which works with numerous Grand Rapids and Godfrey-Lee schools to partner students one-on-one with an adult mentor.
“We have over a hundred on our waiting list this year, and so we are looking for a hundred volunteers to become mentors for the school year.”
Mentors make a one-year commitment meeting once a week during the school day. The application process takes less than 15 minutes online and, once a background check is completed and approved, a three-hour training session is all that’s required to begin mentoring.
“Because we don’t ask for people to have any background whatsoever or experience working with kids, but we do want to prepare them for before they go into the schools.”
Affinity focuses on social emotional learning and believes all kids need 5 to 7 safe adults in their lives, outside of their immediate family.
Enos says to those who aren’t sure if they’d make a good mentor, it’s a decision they won’t regret.
“Some of our mentors have said it’s the easiest commitment that they have ever made that has brought them so much in return.”
You can learn more online at AffinityMentoring.org
