The Significance of Minority Male Mentoring Programs By Israel Laguer

Using Lester and Johnson’s (1981:119) definition, we define mentoring as “a one-to-one learning relationship between an older person and a younger person that is based on modeling behavior and extended dialogue between them.” Mentoring programs are a great way to help the developmental process of college students and serve as a vehicle where youth develop important psychological and behavioral assets, including self-esteem and abilities for coping. A mentor should be versatile enough in their approach to be able to acclimate to a protégés learning paradigm.

In a 2005 issue of the Chronicle of Higher Education demographic information was compiled in reference to college enrollment. The Chronicle reveals that African American men make up 35.8% of the total African American college population, while women account for 64.2%. It is evident when looking at these figures that there is still some sort of disconnect creating disproportionate rates among African American men and women in higher education. Latinos were also found to have a disproportional percentile as 42.1% of their college attendees were men and 57.9 percent were women. Researchers have long attributed this problem to the social, economic, and educational shortcomings many minority males face prior to entering college. Formalized mentoring programs encourage a strategy of connection which is a main contributor to the students’ decision to remain enrolled at the college. The literature also states that when students have the opportunity to connect with peers, faculty, and staff, they are more likely to graduate. Also, DuBois and colleagues (2002) mention that when youth receive social support it increases their self-esteem. This suggests that students are not only being placed in mentoring programs, but they are engaged in them as well. This is partially due to the guidance and nurturing that takes place in these mentor/protégé relationships.

The AMIGOS formal mentoring program is being put into practice across the nation by many organizations. Generally this program requires for a young professional or student to be paired off with an older, more experienced professional or faculty member in the case of higher education. The name AMIGOS is an acronym which stands for Arranged Mentor for Instructional Guidance Organizational (or other) Support. This is a formal mentoring model that can be applied in an organization or educational setting and emphasizes the connection between mentor and protégé under a framework called the four centers. As described by the literature, the following are the four concepts that build the AMIGOS framework.

Concept (1) is IDEA (Individual Diagnosis, Evaluation, and Assessment) center. This concept requires that a profile be collected from each aspiring mentor and protégé as preparation for the process of compatibility pairing. Using personality assessment material, each individual’s personality type is accounted for as well as additional useful information that will assist this process. Based of the assessments, the student is paired with a faculty or staff member who best fits their personality type and that can help the student grow in areas they have described they may be lacking skills in. Concept 2 is the TIPS (Training Instruction Practical Tips) center. This concept consists of providing further training for mentor/protégé pairs and periodically provides tips and strategies on how to collectively approach difficulty classes and assignments. Concept 3 is COPE (Center for Organizational Problem Enlightenment). Student and their mentors are referred to the COPE if they are experiencing difficulty or problems. Considering that these problems may heavily revolve around academic issues, the COPE will often gain insight from the TIPS center. Concept 4 is the FUN (Friendship, Understanding, and Nurturing) center. This specific concept is an essential part of the model. This concept strengthens the bonds of the pairs by suggesting that they attend social functions together. Stromei (1998) says that socialization between mentors and protégés builds the critical rapport that is needed is a successful mentoring relationship.

Individuals who participate in the AMIGOS mentoring program are required to do so for at least a year long term. However, it is recommended that the pairs commit to each other for an additional year. This additional year is recommended because the initial year has many introductory components; therefore students may feel that they have just started to connect with their mentors at the end of the first year. Preferably, mentors and protégés are encouraged to stay paired for the remainder of the students’ undergraduate career. Nonetheless, the FUN and TIPS concepts of the program are partly put in place to make up for the short academic year by providing a structured time to interact and bond.

Founded in 1990, the Student African American Brotherhood mentoring program was organized. This program was initiated under the objective of helping African American men from a developmental stand point by enhancing their understanding of their responsibilities as United States citizens. In addition to its primary objective, the SAAB has implemented Habitat for Humanity and the Big Brothers and Sisters as their philanthropic service entity. To fulfill its objectives SAAB has implemented key components that specifically address the historical limitations African American men face in the pursuit of a college education. Some of these components are but not limited to, tutorial assistance, community service, career planning and services, and cultural and social functions. These programs have been noted as encouraging optimism for the future and instilling a high sense of self-worth among African American men. The following is an outline of the six essential components that contribute to the success of the SAAB mentoring program.

Though each chapter of SAAB is modified to meet some of the unique needs of African American males at each respective campus, there are still six consistent committees. The first is the personal development committee. The purpose of this factor is the offering of educational programs to engage students in learning thus enhancing their development. The service committee is geared toward service learning projects. To reiterate, SAAB has connected with Habitat for Humanity and Big Brothers and Sisters to foster a way in which students can contribute to the surrounding community. The academic committee is the following component of the mentoring program. This element of the program is crucial because it focuses on academic support, career services and student leadership; which all influence recruitment and retention of other African American male students. The fourth aspect of the program is the financial affairs committee. This committee does not only focus on financial aid but it also provides lectures on money management, investing in stocks and bonds, building positive credit and much more. The fifth component is the spiritual-enrichment/ social committee. This component may seem like it overlaps with the personal development committee, nonetheless they differ in the sense that this committee provides opportunity for social bonding activities such as; attending church services, bowling, movies, skating, playing sports, and others. Lastly, there is the membership/ public relations committee which focuses on the usage of modern technology for membership rosters, maintaining a chapter website, using e-mail, and advertisement of events.