Bridge seeks mentors to help refugee youth reach goals for self-sufficiency
Sunday, October 4th, 2020
A brand new Bridge program aims to support high school and college-aged refugees by providing dedicated mentors to guide them on their paths to self-sufficiency.
Coordinators of the Refugee Youth Mentoring Program are recruiting and training mentors to help the teens and young adults prepare for college, enter the workforce or reach other personal goals they set for themselves.
“Our ultimate goal with this program is to help these youth refugees cross over into American culture with a simpler transition, so when they are finished with the program, they are more self-sufficient, more independent and have confidence to go out there and become the incredible citizens we know they are and are going to be,” said Steve Winfree, the program coordinator in Knoxville.
The program is being funded by a grant administered by the Tennessee Office for Refugees, a department of Catholic Charities of Tennessee. Both Steve and Nate Hiltibran, the program coordinator in Chattanooga, are AmeriCorps VISTA volunteers working with Bridge. The program should be ready for launch by the first of the year.
The program will match mentors up with Bridge clients between the ages of 15 and 24 who have been in the U.S. for less than five years.
The program serves young refugees at a critical time in their lives as they decide whether to attend college or enter the workforce.
“Our mentors will help clients set their own educational, vocational and personal development goals,” Nate said.
When they meet for the first time, the mentor will guide the mentee through a list of open-ended questions to help him or her through this goal-setting process. Then, the mentor will meet regularly with the mentee—an hour or two each week—to offer encouragement, provide resources and facilitate opportunities with community partners to ensure they stay on track to achieving that goal.
“Mentorship is such a powerful tool that can accomplish so many things, so we are going to try not to limit it too much,” Nate said.
Nate and Steve, who began developing the program this summer, said they have been speaking with refugees to anticipate areas of focus.
“Learning English, how to get into college, how to learn different trades for work, financial literacy – those are the biggest ones I’m being told by different refugees they wished they had help with,” Steve said.
“Another big one is civic and social engagement—learning about the U.S. and having opportunities to engage with their new community,” Nate added.
The program coordinators have been reaching out to area businesses, civic groups, nonprofits and other community resources to seek services and opportunities they can offer to the mentees.
“We want to have an abundance of resources on the website and in a handbook we can give the mentor,” Steve said.
For example, in Knoxville, local banks will offer financial literacy support, while Pellissippi State Community College has said it can provide resources for college and career readiness, Steve said.
Due to COVID-19, the program coordinators said those mentoring sessions will initially be online through a virtual platform like Zoom.
They also plan to organize monthly activities focused on community and cultural engagement.
“A lot of the youth expressed a desire to do group mentoring, which would provide opportunities to meet new people and build those peer relationships,” Nate said. “We’re still trying to figure out what that might look like.”
In the meantime, they’re recruiting and training mentors.
“I think a big part of that is finding people who are willing to learn with humility and also to encourage and support these mentees in whatever goals the mentees have for themselves,” Nate said.
The program coordinators said they hope to attract mentors from diverse backgrounds and lived experiences.
“It’s not so important what their job is, but what their character is and where their heart is,” Steve said. “If you have a caring heart, especially for kids and youth, you’re going to be a successful mentor.”
Those working with high school students will be asked to commit for three months, he said, at which time a program coordinator will meet with both the mentor and mentee to assess the relationship and their progress.
“If the mentor and youth agree it’s a great relationship and they’re doing well, we’ll ask them to commit to the rest of the nine months,” Steve said.
Those mentoring youth aged 19 or older will commit to a 6-month period before the assessment to determine whether to continue for the remaining six months, he said.
The program’s success will benefit the community at large in other ways.
“You’re helping with the future of our communities by mentoring these youth into becoming successful citizens, contributing to society and making this a better place to live,” Steve said. “That’s something that these youth need. Many have been through so much trauma, and they’re coming to a new place where they don’t know anybody. As neighbors, when we reach our hand down and say, ‘I’m here. Welcome to East Tennessee. How can I help?’–that’s a way to build community for those who really need it.”
For more information about how to become a mentor or mentee in Knoxville, contact Steve at youthmentor@bridgerefugees.org. In Chattanooga, contact Nate at vistachatt@bridgerefugees.org.