Last Post 8 days Ago
This week the Chicago SunTimes is hosting a series of feature articles to show the impact of violence on inner city kids.
In April a story titled Hidden Wounds of Violence focused on the same issue. I wrote about it here on the Tutor/Mentor Connection blog . I included a quote from the article in which a parent said "she has enrolled him in tutoring, mentoring and other programs to give him an outlet for his energy in a safe, indoor environment."
Mike Trakan, who works for the Tutor/Mentor Connection posted an article on his blog showing locations of poorly performing public schools, along with "succeeding schools" which may just be steps away from being on the poorly performing list. He overlayed this list on a poverty map, and then a demographics map, showing high concentrations of African American and Hispanic populations in the city. Mike's questioning some assumptions and asking for feedback, so I encourage you to read the article.
I followed up with an article on my own blog, using maps to show where tutor/mentor programs are currently available. We need to move beyond sensationalizing violence to forming learning groups in businesses, churches, hospitals, universities, beyond poverty neighborhoods, so that more people understand the problem and become personally involved in providing time, talent and dollars for solutions.
Here's a link to some involvement steps that any group might use.
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I have led a volunteer-based tutor/mentor program serving inner city youth in the Cabrini-Green area since 1975. I've also held various advertising jobs with the Montgomery Ward Corporation from 1973-1990.
In 1990 I created a non profit to mentor Cabrini Green youth and in 1993 I created Cabrini Connections (http://www.cabriniconnec
tions.net) and the Tutor/Mentor Connection (http://www.tutormentorco
nnection.org )
The aim of Cabrini Connections is to build a non-school adult support network, where volunteers from diverse business background serve as tutors, mentors, coaches, leaders, advocates and friends, with a commitment to "do all we can" to help each teen who joins us when entering 7th grade be starting a job/career by age 25.
The aim of the Tutor/Mentor Connection is more ambitious. We want to help programs like Cabrini Connections be available to k-12 youth in all high poverty areas in the Chicago region. We maintain a database listing more than 250 tutoring/mentoring organizations in the region and host this an a library of information about tutoring/mentoring and how to operate a non profit. We host a May and November conference intended to draw people together to share what they know. learn from others, and build collaborations that increase resources for all programs in Chicago. Through the Internet we connect with leaders of tutor/mentor programs in cities throughout the country and the rest of the world.
Take a look at our sites and join us if you'd like to end poverty by building a more comprehensive support system for inner city kids.
http://www.tutormentorcon
nection.org
http://tutormentor.blogsp
ot.com
http://tutormentorconnect
ion.ning.com
http://www.tutormentorcon
ference.org
http://www.cabriniconnect
ions.net
Member Since: 5/21/2008
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