RISE Mentorship Program
It’s been said that human connection and communication is what propels the success of one’s personal and professional life. In 2020 we set out to do just that through the RISE Reentry Mentorship Program, a cornerstone of our broader reentry programs.
We’ve been truly humbled by our volunteer community support through the inception of this program having more certified mentors than we know what to do with. As is the common theme of 2020, COVID‑19 heavily impacted our mentorship program in a multitude of ways, but reentry is a lifelong process of challenge and change, pandemic or not.
Intended to bridge the community face‑to‑face with those enduring the reentry process, mentors and mentees found themselves working together primarily through FaceTime or Zoom with the occasional coffee or lunch. Most certainly a different scenario than what we had planned, yet the interest in the program remained solid and proved valuable.
RISE Graduate, Alex, tells us, “I was interested in the Reentry Mentorship Program to not only develop my network, but I understood the importance of connecting deeper with the reentry services near him.[1] My mentor, John, and I developed a great friendship and he has been the best supporter and cheerleader for me, encouraging me through my undergrad degree and starting my Masters. He’s provided counsel and advice when I didn’t really have other voices in my ear, and it’s proven to be professional and proficient guidance.”
“We’ve had an authentic connection,” says John, Alex’s mentor. “Alex and I are completely comfortable with presenting, examining and challenging how we happen to do life and how that serves (or not) our existing/developing priorities. My mentee is bright, informed, articulate, resourceful, persuasive and opinionated. He is completely at home in the world of ideas. He stretches my thinking and invites a healthy debate over a wide range of topics. Frequently, our conversation time feels like a good workout.”
It’s connections like Alex and John’s that show us mentoring can work. “Being a part of the RISE Reentry Mentorship Program has kept me grounded and helped temper expectations. John kept my feet on the ground while encouraging my head to roam in the clouds.”
In 2021 we look forward to more human connections like these, in whatever capacity the environment allows. We see great value in the mentorship program, not only for our graduates coming out of incarceration, but in building empathy on the outside. John, also a longtime in‑prison volunteer tells us, “Being a RISE mentor is a continuing education. That may sound trite, but it is completely true. My understanding of incarceration and reentry, while still limited, has grown exponentially.”
As this program evolves, we'll be leaning into peer support specialist roles as the perspective from lived experience proves to be a valuable one. The year and all that has come with it gives RISE a deepened motivation to continue pushing forward through the entire reentry process.[2][3]
