Brashear kids get BBBS mentor2.0: ‘Like having a personal guidance counselor’

What if kids had their own personal mentors to make sure they are set for college—and more than just academically prepared?

Some kids, says Sharon Southlea, CFO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh (BBBS), “may be academically ready for college but they may not find themselves culturally ready. It is culture shock.” They may be among the first generation in their families to be college bound, and they may not know anyone locally who has experienced college.

To fix that problem, BBBS is about to roll out mentor2.0 at Brashear High School this fall, and is recruiting 120 professionals to take part in one-on-one mentoring—a BBBS specialty.

The mentor2.0 program will match college-educated adults with ninth graders for special in-school events, and for supervised online coaching to develop such things as a love of learning and perseverance. It will help the kids understand the non-cognitive skills needed not only to start college or vocational training but to continue through the years, since the needs of freshmen are different than the requirements of juniors.

Online, the kids will have assignment questions to discuss with their mentors, which all participating students will then discuss together in class. The online chats can take place at any hour, which will allow mentor2.0 to use the talents of local adults who may not have time for the lengthier Big Brother or Big Sister mentoring commitment.

Each two-hour in-school event will include such activities as performing skits and role playing, says Maggie Giles, mentor2.0’s program manager. The activities will promote students’ ability to understand and advocate for their needs—and simply provide crucial face time between child and mentor … “as if every student has her own college counselor,” she says.

“Big Brother Big Sisters was already doing quality mentoring,” adds Southlea, and that makes mentor2.0 a natural fit for the organization. “We have measurable outcomes from our other programs. We just don’t put a mentor and a mentee together and say ‘go have fun.’

“Ultimately,” she says, “the hope is that these mentees would go to college and stay in college, and that they will be at a comfort level they can handle.”