Virtual Mentor for Refugee-Background Student

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Founded in 2010, The Refugee Response empowers resettled families to grow roots in the Cleveland area, supporting them in becoming engaged, self-sufficient and contributing members of their new communities.

Youth Mentoring Program

The Youth Mentoring Program has been a hallmark of the organization since our founding, supporting children and youth in grades K-8 on the West Side of Cleveland through personalized academic mentoring. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we have developed a remote learning mentoring program to better serve the youth and families we work with.

We are currently recruiting Volunteer Mentors to establish long-term relationships with their mentee and work on a one-on-one basis through biweekly Zoom sessions. As a Virtual Mentor, you can offer a resettled student in the Cleveland area much needed academic support, greater confidence in English language skills, and you can empower them to actualize their own personal and educational goals.

Specific Duties

• Provide virtual mentoring, academic support, and social and emotional support to your assigned mentee;
• Commit to meeting virtually for a 40-minute Zoom session twice a week on a consistent schedule, in the late afternoon, during one of our staff-hosted mentoring slots between 4pm and 7pm;
• Commit to building a long-term relationship with your mentee and supporting them at least throughout a full academic cycle.
• Submit monthly feedback around mentoring activities, student needs, progress, and achievements.
• Engage with your mentee over Zoom, utilizing Screen Share, Digital Whiteboards, and with collaborative access to student's academic assignments and learning activities.
• Support your mentee's ability to navigate their school's online portal and monitor their engagement with online assignments and lessons.
• Refer students to The Refugee Response staff if and when students are facing challenges that require more intensive, in-person assistance through our Learning Lab.

Qualifications

• Must be able to commit to at least one year of mentoring.
• Ability to meet with students for a minimum of two 40-minute sessions a week
• An additional 1-2 hours per month on reporting, communication with TRR staff
• Ability to pass a background check
• Experience with volunteering and awareness of intercultural communication, migration experiences, and child education are preferred.

At The Refugee Response, we encourage committed, engaged, and intentional mentoring relationships that go beyond tutoring or teaching by creating ties of solidarity in our shared community. A helpful way to think about mentoring is as a relationship based on mutual accompaniment, in which you and your mentee are learning from one another. Mentors engage in active listening and recognize and respect mentees' own forms of knowledge and experience, while they support mentees to accomplish their own academic and personal goals.

Our mentors come from all different backgrounds, each with their own unique skillset. The common thread is their commitment to making our newest community members feel welcome. Mentors have the opportunity to positively impact the lives of resettled families through the simple gift of their time. By being a consistent and positive presence in the lives of your mentee you can help them build confidence and truly become a part of the community that they now call home.