BASIC STANDARDS

The following are the Basic Standards for a safe and effective mentoring or tutoring program. Programs wishing to learn more about best practices may download a copy of the National Mentoring Partnership's Elements of Effective Practice from MENTOR at www.mentoring.org, click on Find Resources and then Elements of Effective Practices.

Basic Standard #1:

Determine specific goals/objectives for the mentoring program.

Basic Standard #2:

Have the mentor complete and keep on file the following items:

  1. A written mentor application
  2. Criminal Background Check. Minimum standard background check is based on “Date of Birth” through the Delaware State Police.
    Criminal History Screening Form - PDF
  3. A signed volunteer agreement which specifies
    1. expectations of the mentor
    2. the policy on confidentiality
    3. restrictions regarding contact with the youth
    4. expectations that there will be regular and consistent contact between the mentor/tutor and the youth
  4. A tuberculosis screening form and confirmation of the test if required (in accordance with state law for school-based programs, only)
    Department of Health Questionnaire for Volunteers Form - PDF

Basic Standard #3:

Have the following forms completed regarding the mentee and keep on file:

  1. A parent or guardian permission form authorizing the youth’s participation in the mentoring program.
  2. A written agreement with the youth (when age appropriate) outlining expectations for the mentee’s participation.

Basic Standard #4:

Conduct a face-to-face meeting between a program representative and the mentor/tutor before matching with the youth.

Basic Standard #5:

Conduct a face-to-face meeting between a program representative and the youth to be mentored.

Basic Standard #6:

Provide a program orientation or overview including program policies and procedures, goals and expectations of mentors/tutors.

Basic Standard #7:

Provide for and assure that all mentors/tutors have completed mentor training appropriate for the program.

Basic Standard #8:

Provide regular contact between the program representative and each member of the match (mentor and mentee) for the purposes of monitoring progress and addressing issues.

Basic Standard #9:

Have in place a plan for mentor/mentee recognition.

Providing recognition for significant contributions and accomplishments is an important component of a healthy, safe and rewarding mentoring environment. It is true, after all, that little things-the pat on the back, the positive mention of one's name-do matter. Both public recognition and private kudos for a job well done boost morale, foster team spirit and raise retention rates across the board: mentees, mentors, volunteers and staff alike.

Basic Standard #10:

Conduct regular evaluations appropriate to the objectives of the program.

People in the mentoring field tend to believe implicitly that mentoring benefits young people and that, therefore, expensive evaluations are an unnecessary drain on precious resources. Given the choice between spending money on evaluation or extending their services, many mentoring programs will gladly choose the latter. Although understandable, such choices may be shortsighted. We should not necessarily assume that all mentoring programs are equally beneficial - and we still have a lot to learn about the many newer types of mentoring programs (e.g., site-based, group, peer, e-mail). Convincing evaluations are needed to assess the effectiveness of both traditional one-to-one mentoring programs and newer approaches. Such work will play an important role in the expansion of high-quality mentoring programs.