Panyappi Indigenous Youth Mentoring Program Evaluation

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Panyappi Indigenous Youth Mentoring Program Evaluation Being a mentor is a unique role. Although it may overlap to a degree with other human service roles, e.g. youth workers and social workers, mentoring usually operates at a more intense level with a higher frequency of contact. Mentors are not expected to do case management or be qualified in counselling, although they often provide critical personal support and care for young people. The review highlighted the importance of mentors fostering a positive, caring and non-judgemental approach by mentors, as “those involved with young people on a one-to-one basis particularly need to be abe l to meet young people ‘where they are’ and guide them in their journey. ” 45 Researchers in the USA also emphasise that mentors must have “a caring attitude, high expectations [of what young people can achieve with support], participatory style and commitment.” 46 Age group As noted above, mentoring for young people is often targeted at the 13 to 18 year age group. Reasons for mentoring programs may vary - not all are targeted at young people experiencing specific problems or showing disruptive behaviour. Evaluations of youth mentoring programs in a crime prevention context have shown that there is greater success with engaging a younger age group. 47,48 Geographical focus Previous evaluations of crime prevention focused mentoring programs also highlighted the importance of having a specific geographical focus. This supports Program Coordinators to develop effective and positive networks with local service providers or referral sources. 49 It also responds to the way in which young people may gather in specific locations, which has an important social purpose and is not simply about engaging in offending behaviour or being exposed to other criminal activity. Stand alone or integrated programs An evaluation of the One2One mentoring program for young offenders in NSW has identified that “to be sustainable, a mentoring program may need to…be delivered in conjunction with other youth and family support programs.” 50 A recent national overview of mentoring programs also highlighted that “integrated mentoring projects are more likely to be effective.” 51 They may be integrated through being co-located with other youth and family support programs and/or due to the collaborative efforts of the program staff to link in and work collaboratively with a range of other government and non-government community services. When projects with a juvenile justice focus link to 45 ibid, p.100. 46 Benard, B. (1992) op cit, p.18. 47 ARTD (2000). Evaluation of Mentoring Mates: Wooloomooloo Crime Prevention and Safety Initiative. Sydney: NRMA. 48 ARTD (1999/2001) op cit. 49 ARTD (2000), op c t; i ARTD (2002), op cit. 50 ARTD (2002). Mentoring for young offenders: One to one relationship producing positive benefits. Evaluation report of the NSW pilot program. Crime Prevention Division, Attorney General’s Department. www.lawlink.new.gov.au/cpd 51 Wilczynski, A. (2002), op cit. - 28 -
Panyappi Indigenous Youth Mentoring Program Evaluation other community organisations they have the capacity to contribute to systems reforms. However, integrated programs have different demands because: …developing viable collaborations is not easy and takes much time and effort. Organisations have different cultures and institutional climates, autonomy, flexibility and power; individuals with differing experiences and expertise; giving rise to different ways of defining issues and solutions. Once established, collaborative relationships need to be nurtured and maintained over time. 52 The Australian view is that programs integrated into a range of services, including those offered by the auspicing organisation, provide a better support base as mentoring programs commonly take some time to establish and usually have a small number of staff. The availability of existing infrastructure, administrative support and access to established networks with key agencies, including those who may refer clients, may also improve cost-effectiveness and program sustainability. 53,54 Others acknowledged that: Even energy and commitment on the part of the program manager is usually not enough to sustain a mentoring program if it is not institutionalised within a 55 larger organisation or integrated into an array of services provided to youth. Paid staff Many Australian mentoring programs depend on volunteers to be mentors. 56 There is usually at least one paid staff member who is the Program Coordinator. Researchers in the US have argued that in successful mentoring programs the paid staff: …are the most important single ingredient….These individuals are in contact with the kids, the mentors, school staff and families. Not surprisingly, in programs where such staff are a full-time presence, the whole mentoring process tends to revolve around them; they are the ‘glue’ in the mentoring process. 57 There is limited information available on what it means to have paid mentors in addition to a Program Coordinator, as in Panyappi. Those that do may be better positioned to meet the requirement that programs directed at young people in high risk or stress situations be “both intensive and extensive, start early and plan to stick around for a long time. They must also be prepared for inevitable failures and be ready to intervene when problems arise and relationships do not hold.” 58 52 ARTD (1999/2001) op cit, p.22. 53 Wilczynski, A. (2002) op cit. 54 Wilczynski, Culvenor, et l. (2003), op cit. 55 Benard, B. (1992) op cit, p.17. 56 MacCallum, J. & Beltman, S. (2002) op cit. 57 Freedman, M. (1991). The kindness of strangers: Reflections on the mentoring movement. Philadelphia, PA: Public/Private Ventures, p.63 58 ibid, p.60. - 29 -
Page 1 and 2: Panyappi Indigenous Youth Mentoring
Page 3 and 4: © Panyappi Indigenous Youth Mentor
Page 5 and 6: Beginning the Story… Panyappi Ind
Page 7 and 8: Executive Summary What is Panyappi?
Page 17 and 18: Program funding Panyappi Indigenous
Page 21 and 22: JUSTICE Strong support from the Cri
Page 29 and 30: ATSIC recently reported: Panyappi I
Page 31: Panyappi Indigenous Youth Mentoring
Page 37 and 38: Evaluation questions Panyappi Indig
Page 71 and 72: Support for mentors Panyappi Indige
Page 75 and 76: Weaving the Threads Together Achiev
Page 77 and 78: ω ω ω Panyappi Indigenous Youth
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Recommendations Panyappi Indigenous
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Outcome Formative or process Append
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Panyappi Indigenous Youth Mentoring Program Evaluation

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