The state‘s education chief and the leader of Indiana’s largest teachers union finally came to agreement in one element of education this week: Older adults are of value to younger students.
Any older adult could have told them that.
State superintendent Tony Bennett and Nate Schnellenberger, president of the Indiana State Teachers Association, came together for a press conference to support the worthy concept of mentoring.
They should have shaken hands and walked away. Instead, they fielded media questions and displayed an adversarial approach to their legislative agenda.
But, for a short time, it was reassuring to Hoosiers to hear the two leaders note the value of mentors, tying the sageness of maturity with the education of youth.
Bennett said, “We have to make it our moral obligation to do whatever we can to help every child have a chance to succeed.”
Schnellenberger cited research from the Indiana Youth Institute that shows that students at risk for academic failure benefit from adult mentors. Their odds for graduating from high school and going on to college, for example, are higher than their counterparts.
The state and ISTA are supporting a joint venture, the Indiana Mentoring Partnership, which started last year but needs about 800 new volunteers. About 1,300 children are on waiting lists to be paired with adults who can spend at least an hour a week with the student.
Certainly no child should have to wait to be paired with a caring mentor. Find out how to sign up at www.abetterhour.org, call (877) 661-3040 or call a local school district.
Mentors will be recruited from the education and business community to have an influence in shaping Indiana’s youth. In a larger sense, mentoring changes the lives of students. Locally, other groups can challenge themselves to become mentors, including faith-based organizations, community leaders and school groups.
The most important resource that a volunteer should have is time. Every minute can make a difference in a child’s life, whether it’s improving academic or study skills, improving a child’s self-esteem or helping them discover new talents. There, of course, should be a mutual interest but, above all, the mentor needs to develop trust and caring with the student.
After all, if Indiana can get two adversaries to support a project, there must be value and worth in it.
In summary
- No child should have to be on a waiting list to have support and help from an adult mentor.