Blogs

This is my first time as a blogger so I may not have it right yet.  I was encouraged by Dan to participate and become familiar with it.  So here it goes although I don't have any experience yet.

As a non profit organization in the N. Lawndale area of Chicago.  I am concerned about the welfare of our youth and young adults.  Dan shared with me some very useful information on the ways that we can promote our community development and youth development.  We talked about youth in our program becoming potential customers and future employees for companies that invest in our youth. We talked about volunteers from different backgrounds and skill set that already exist in the many church within N. Lawndale. His mapping strategies of business and services around N. Lawndale as well as Chicago showed a grid of isolate support that cannot been seen or appreciated until you have actually been able to see how productive and beneficial the map are in several areas of the community. The purpose of such a map is to connect youth and volunteers in organized, long-term support system that reviews and support similar agencies by reviewing strategies for combined support.  For financial sustainability, Social Impact and longevity that aim to transform the lives of youth with us collaborating and supporting the community by bringing in donors and sponsors for whatever agency can benefit from it.  We have partnered with Tutor/Mentor Institute LLC to help generate revenue and support to continue the operations of T/MI while we break the feeling of generated poverty.  Thanks Dan for your help both now and later.  Looking forward to the June Tutor Mentor Conference. 

In every high poverty neighborhood there are one or two anchor institutions, like a hospital, university, bank, etc. that could provide leadership and strategic support to strategies that support the growth of youth mentoring programs.

If those same institutions also focus on community wealth building then they may be more likely to build the types of leadership support needed to take a long term approach to youth mentoring program growth. 

This graphic is included in this blog post that I wrote today on this topic. I encourage you all to review t his and use the ideas in reaching out to anchor institutions in your own communities.

Building a resourceful support for the above Lukenya Pillars of Transformation a community based organization that empowers in the community in several ways

I created this graphic last week to illustrate the progression of thinking that I've followed for the past 20 years.

I know from my own experiences and those of others, and from much reading, that connecting youth with caring adults can have a positive impact.

I also know that building and sustaining these adult-youth connections in high poverty neighborhoods is very difficult without some organizational structure to enable youth and adults to meet in safe places and without supportive mentor-leaders in place to support weekly interactions. Thus, finding the existing volunteer-based tutor/mentor programs in any city, and finding ways to help them get the ideas, talent, resources, volunteers needed to operate and constantly improve would seem to be a good idea.

Once we agree that organized programs are a good idea, then if we plot locations of existing programs on a map showing poverty and other indicators of youth needing extra adult support, we can quickly identify neighborhoods with few or no programs.  It would seem that leaders in business, media, politics, philanthropy and other sectors would want to work together to help existing programs grow and to help new programs grow in areas that are without programs.

Through the Tutor/Mentor Connection (T/MC) which I started in 1993, and the Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC, which I formed in 2011, I'm trying to support all three levels of this thinking.   Browse the articles I've posted here, here, and here and in my blog to learn more about this thinking and to find ideas that you can apply to support these ideas in your own community.

Here's a presentation you all might share to recruit talent to help your own organizations.

Recruiting Talent Volunteers for Youth Tutoring, Mentoring, Learning Programs

In this topic, the youth disused in length on trees species (nitrogen fixing) appropriate in a particular region that will be extremely helpfully in improving local agro forestry system. That is to say, we will be identifying fast –growing, multipurpose (MPFG) trees that have the following qualities:

-Survival in full (12 hours) sunlight.

-Have strong taproot (as opposed to an extensive lateral root system)

-Produce wood that is useful for both of construction and fuel wood

-Be very coppice able (grows back vigorously  when cut)

-Have leaves that can be used either as animal forage, organic fertilizer, a natural insecticide or other use

-These trees should be preferable be nitrogen fixing trees. Later this youth group planted trees in their neighborhood.

Due to the recurring droughts and chronic water shortages in many areas, communities pay an increasingly high price for water the lack of water. Groundwater resources are crucial for communities particularly during the dry season and in large arid zones. We needy your support to support them. Anyone with an Idea? This photo show the hostility, this community endures in search of this pressures commodity.

I just read this article on the Stanford Social Innovation review and I'm guilty of leading with problem statements and scaring off people who might want to help.

However, teaching old dogs new tricks is something that's hard to do, as is breaking long-term habits. 

Thus, my solution is to recruit volunteers who might help shape the messages in ways that don't scare off those who want to be involved.  Want to help?

Nyabohanse Children Rescue Centre reaches young people everywhere, working together with the local churches, Community and other like-minded partners to raise up lifelong commitment to  the young people  who lead by their godliness in lifestyle, devotion to the Word of God and prayer, passion for sharing the love of Christ and commitment to social involvement.

I've been reading Curt Bonk's book titled the World is Open and have put in dozens of sticky notes on pages with links to on-line learning resources that he mentions.  I intended to go back and find these, one at a time, and add them to my own library on the Tutor/Mentor Connection site.

However, Curt's already done much of the work of building a list of resources. Visit this page and this page and you'll find resources that anyone can  use in their own teaching, mentoring, parenting and learning.

If you visit this page and begin to use some of the resources please post a comment to this blog sharing what you looked at and how you used it. Bonk's book focuses on "sharing" via the Internet. We can put the spirit of the book to work in our own efforts if many of those on the Tutor/Mentor Connection will share ways they are using the information he is sharing.

You can do it. Most kids love to talk about themselves and are thrilled when adults give them their full attention. You might be surprised to hear what they want to be when they grow up.

You can provide mentoring through a volunteer program such as those sponsored by the National Mentoring Partnership, Tutor/Mentor Connection, The Boys & Girls Club, Read Aloud America, America’s Promise, the Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Foundation and many other organizations. They welcome individual, community and corporate participation.

You can also mentor a child more informally any time, anywhere throughout the year: during a meal, while doing chores around the house, during TV commercials or on the way home from soccer practice. Simple questions such as “Who do you think designs soccer stadiums?” can lead to conversations about diverse career choices and areas of study.  

One-on-one conversations can uncover important clues about what will motivate a child in life and in school. Listen carefully and tie that clue to a school subject, an exploratory field trip or an informational interview with someone who works in that field.

You can elicit important information through shared creative activities too: reading aloud, singing, dancing, painting, exercising, visiting museums, going to movies.

The key is to hone in on what makes a child glow with enjoyment, curiosity or a sense of achievement and to help them connect that to their schoolwork and life skills development.

You don’t need to preach or judge. Only encourage, nurture and appreciate. Think back to what it meant to you to have an adult care about your thoughts, dreams and opinions. That’s where strong self-esteem starts and self doubt ends.

If you don’t know the answers to a child’s questions, find them together. Knowing how and where to find answers is a fabulous life skill in and of itself.

Visit libraries and museums, go on field trips, source varied reference materials, interview experts – show kids how rewarding it is to explore the world around them. Along the way, they will become more comfortable with finding their place in it.

You have a lot of wisdom to share about your work, education, career path and professional experience. Share how you have learned –or are still learning- to deal with challenges and opportunities along the way. Use all of it as your mentoring curriculum.  It’s good stuff!

Sharing stories or regrets about the good, the bad and, yes, the stupid decisions you have made will help a child feel more at ease and less anxious about his or her own decisions. Kids appreciate honesty. (And they can spot a poser a mile away.)

Instill a respect for all professionals and what they contribute to our working world.

 Let kids know that ‘work’ is not a negative four-letter word, but a privilege and a compliment. After all, being hired by someone means they think you will be important to their success!

It's almost 6weeks, and I have been work here as an intern.

At first, I don't know well about this company, but now I know more than before.

This company tries to teach poor children. I think this is very important thing, because children are our future.

Moreover, we try to make social network between our members.

Social network have very powerful tools in these days, i think.

So, I start to make the graph that we can see the growth of our network easily.

Actually, this is my first time to doing this work. So, my work is not good, but I want to help.

Finally, I finish making the network since 2007 to June, 2012.

However, this is not the end, because our networks keep change.

In my work the network keep growing each year, and the members are bumping now we have more than 400people on our site.

However, the growth of our network is not enough. We want huger and strong network.

So, I want to next and many other people who help us keep trying to make that.

After, finish my work it is sad to me. However, I think I am not going back with empty hand. I met great people here and got really good experience. They always gave big smile to me, and that made me happy. I think so did other people.

Thanks to my boss, Daniel Bassill, and other people in my company. I can’t think my America life without my company.

Thank you and thanks again.

I always prey for my company and remember forever.

  From the first day, my main job was creating presentation. For creating presentations, I used Prezi.com. That was my first time to use that tool. My very first presentation is introduction of myself. After that, I made a introduction of T/MC presentation. And then, I made 4 presentations about T/MC strategies. And I'm working on creating Social Network Map presentation. At the first, I didn't know well about T/MC, but I read many articles from the internet about T/MC and social network. That was hard to read and sum up information for my presentation. But I did it! And I feel like my reading skill is better than before.

  During internship, I learned about Chicago area poverty problems. There are children who cannot get an education because they do not have enough money and good environment. Before came in USA, I volunteered for teaching poverty kids in Korea. But I thought that problem is not serious in USA, but that was my miss understanding. 

  Also T/MC opened conference during my internship period. At that day, many people who interested in helping poverty children came to our conference. Before the conference, I thought only few people care about this problem, but there were many people came to our conference. At there, I met one woman who works at IIT. It was good experience, too.

  Most of all, I learned important thing from Dan. I felt he really care about poverty children, and I think he is really good person. I am not sure whether I helped him enough or not, but I learned big thing from him, and I will try to volunteer for poverty children in Korea again. I am sure about my internship experience was really precious time, and I am happy to finish my internship with this company.

  I also will help Dan after back to Korea. I really thanks to Dan for providing this good experience. It was my first internship, and I learned many things during this period. I hope more people join with us, and interest in helping kids in the future.

  Here is my presentations during my internship period. Please see this :)

  Introduction of myself : http://prezi.com/ady8ln8oyz_k/introduce/

  T/MC Introduction : http://prezi.com/lt6msdiwtxf-/tmc-intro/

  1st Strategy : http://prezi.com/lxqtellgyhpd/1st-/

  2nd Strategy : http://prezi.com/rm5plphjyds5/2nd/

  3rd Strategy : http://prezi.com/vzfrfvhdvvnb/3rd/

  4th Strategy : http://prezi.com/lrfhrmqdpdaa/4th/

  SNA Strategies : http://www.scribd.com/daniel-f-bassill-7291/d/98368513-Social-Network-Analysis-Mapping-growth-of-a-Network

URL : http://prezi.com/lrfhrmqdpdaa/4th/?auth_key=1bc68c36b3d5b60c42ec445525396dbb14f058a1

This is my last presentation about 4 strategies.

I hope my works help people can understand our strategies easily.

Thanks :)

URL : http://prezi.com/vzfrfvhdvvnb/3rd/

This is my the other strategy presentation file.

This is about 3rd strategy of 4.

I hope you enjoy this :)

Thanks!

Hello.

During last Wed, Thr, and today, I made a presentation file of 2nd strategy.

It may not hard to understand clearly, but I hope you can understand our purpose.

Here is my presentation URL :

http://prezi.com/rm5plphjyds5/2nd/

Thank you.

During last Fri, Mon, and today I made a power point for 1st strategy details.

It was little bit hard because there are so many links that involved with 1st strategy.

Here is a link :

http://prezi.com/lxqtellgyhpd/1st-/

That is for explaining info about our strategy, so there are many words in one page.

members.xlsx   2010version.

tutormentoringconnection.xml   2003version.

This is the information of tutormentorconnection.ning.com members.

tutormentor institute pursue social network, and my analysis can show the growth of our network.

Already, Many kinds of country people are in our network.

I hope this material will help to see our growth of our network easier.