What does it mean to honor youth voice? How do we share power with young people and allow them agency in mentoring relationships? In this episode, we talk with Adelaide Moschler and start at the very beginning with what youth voice is and what it means. Listening to young people can help you build stronger relationships with the young people you kn…

When you’re working with a group of young people, how do you make sure that everyone feels seen and heard? Mentoring isn’t always one-to-one with a young person and how you approach connection and relationship building can look differently in a group. In this episode, we talk with Kristy DeCola about how to facilitate mentoring relationships with g…

Hello Neighbor in Pittsburgh works hard to foster a welcoming and supportive community to our newest neighbors. In this discussion with Jenni Walkup Jayes, we discuss the important role that cultural humility plays in making this happen. It’s not always easy! But making an effort to self-reflect as well as learn about the young people in your life …

What’s more fun than talking about…well…fun! At the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, staff know how important fun and play is when creating welcoming spaces and building relationships with young people. In this episode, we talk with Kelly Rottmund about all the work and intention that’s happening behind the scenes to make sure that the library is a …

What can I do to be a better mentor? In Season 5, Ashley & Sophia invite guests from local organizations and affiliate partners to discuss MENTOR’s Becoming a Better Mentor Guide: Strategies to Be There for Young People. This guide is a free resource written by experts, and it benefits any adult looking to support young people and is full of real-w…

If you listened to our first episode this season, you know that the second leading cause of death in people ages 10-34 is suicide. In this episode, our guest Laurie Barnett Levine, Licensed Social Worker and Chief Executive Officer at Mental Health America of Southwestern PA, talks about the climbing rates of suicide as a result of the COVID pandem…

Dr. Elizabeth Joy, CEO & Founder of JoySociety, chats with us about her research and theory…Success as a Protector Factor. You might be surprised at what Dr. Elizabeth Joy uncovered in her research! In this episode, Dr. Elizabeth Joy talks about redefining and reimagining success as something more holistic to help mentors and caring adults, be inte…

This is a special episode of Mentor Chat where we are talking with young people directly. As caring adults, sometimes we think we know what’s best for young people, but without including them in the conversation and recognizing them as experts of their lives, do we really have their best interest at heart? In this episode, three young people share …

Our guests, Nicole Homerin and Kristin Humphrey, from Partners for Youth with Disabilities share the importance of accessibility (specifically disability accessibility) when it comes to supporting youth mental health and wellbeing. This episode is loaded with information and resources on how mentors and other caring adults can best support young pe…

In this episode of Mentor Chat, guest Dr. Stephanie Romero, Executive Director of Awaken Pittsburgh, chats with Michelle & Ashley about her personal mindfulness & meditation practices and how it changed the trajectory of her career. She is now inspiring educators, students, healthcare professionals and organizations to reduce stress and seek clarit…

We are excited to kick off this season of Mentor Chat with guest Misty Woody, Chief Development Officer at Allegheny Family Network. Allegheny Family Network delivers services through individual parent-to-parent support, support groups, parent education opportunities, the Parent Support Line, and social events. In this episode, Misty takes a deep d…

As we recorded the final episode of this season, our nation was in the grips of tragedy following mass shootings in Buffalo, NY, Orange County, CA and Uvalde, TX. Events like this are heartbreaking and have, unfortunately, become all too common. Now more than ever, it's important for caring adults to be there for young people and to foster open, ho…

Imagine if we surrounded young people with mentors everywhere that they live, learn, work, and play. And not only with new connections, but also through recognizing and building upon the important relationships that are already there! In our last interview of Season 3, we talk with Brenda Jimenez, CEO of MENTOR New York about this potential and mor…

Entering into the workforce as a young person is tough! In this episode of Mentor Chat, we talk with Charline Alexandre-Joseph, Senior Director of Systems Innovation (formerly Director of Workforce Development) at MENTOR, about recruiting, supporting, and retaining young people in a workplace. This is a conversation relevant to adults, young people…

Wouldn't it be nice if there was a handbook for everything? Well now at least there's a guide for how to be a better mentor to young people! In the first interview of the season, Ashley and Michelle talk with Mike Garringer, Director of Research and Evaluation at MENTOR about MENTOR's new free resource for any adult. Becoming a Better Mentor: Strat…

You've heard us talk all about mentoring, but what does working in the mentoring field really look like? Who is TMP and what do we do? What's happening in the mentoring movement nationally and in other places around the country? In this introduction to Season 3, Michelle and Ashley provide some context around these questions and lay the groundwork …

January is National Mentoring Month, and in honor of that, we have a special feature episode of Mentor Chat that you don't want to miss! We had the pleasure of sitting down with Gregg Behr to talk about strategies for creating atmosphere's of learning through Everyday Mentoring. In this episode, Gregg touches on Remake Learning Days, defines learni…

Join Ashley and Michelle as they wrap up the season and discuss impactful moments from the interviews with Dr. Dana Winters, Dr. Harriet Schwartz, and Principal Eric Harper. Do you have questions or thoughts of your own? Share them with us! Leave a review or visit our website to get in touch! Stay Connected with TMP: Sign up to receive weekly Every…

The COVID-19 pandemic has been an unprecedented challenge for schools, students, and educators. At Duquesne Elementary School, Principal Harper and his team continue to face those challenges. Even so, Everyday Mentoring has remained at the heart of what they do. Listen in to our last interview of Season 2 as we talk with Principal Harper about how …

When we talk about mentoring, what we're really talking about is relationships. Just because it may not be called "mentoring," doesn't mean that it isn't an important relationship. In this episode, we talk with Dr. Harriet Schwartz - author and professor - about what it means to have growth-fostering relationships and how we can be intentional abou…

MentorChat's first guest of Season 2 is Dana Winters from the Fred Rogers Center! In this episode, we're talking with Dana about how the simplest interactions with young people can make a huge mentoring difference. Everyday Mentors - the "helpers" - who support kids can be anyone from teachers, to coaches, to crossing guards, and the work that they…

Description: Season 2 of our Mentor Chat podcast focuses a lot on Everyday Mentoring and we're kicking things off with our first episode, which tackles an obvious first question: what is Everyday Mentoring? You may remember us referencing Everyday Mentoring last season. Well, now we're shining a spotlight on the essence of Everyday Mentoring and ho…

Season 2 is coming soon, and this time we're talking about Everyday Mentoring! Everyday Mentoring recognizes that adults everywhere can make a mentoring difference for youth in their daily lives. We'll be taking deep dives and talking with experts to understand what Everyday Mentoring looks like in action and how all caring adults can utilize it to…

Episode 5 - Dishing with the Boss Settle in for a one-on-one with TMP Executive Director, Colleen Fedor. In her 20+ years at the helm of our organization, she's seen the growth and evolution of mentoring in our community and across the country. She's sharing some of her highlights and hopes for the future as we close out this first series of podcas…

Episode 4 - Making the Most of Mentoring We've covered the bases on why mentoring is so important and the positive impact it can have. But still, 1 in 3 young people who want a mentor don't have one. How can we close this gap? One thing we can do is teach kids to seek out mentors in their own networks. Equipping youth with the tools they need to fi…