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Deciding to volunteer as a mentor is a courageous act. Volunteering to spend time with a younger person is a step into unknown territory. This step does not require special skills or knowledge or spending money. It requires a little time and the commitment to take this time regularly. By taking this time you can have a big impact on the life of a child. You can also have a big impact on yourself.
~ Jill Kromminga, Program Director, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Johnson County
~ Jill Kromminga, Program Director, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Johnson County
Community Engagement and Mentoring Resources
The University of Iowa, as a public institution, is committed to serving as a respectful and respected partner in our local, state, national, and international communities. Our students, staff, and faculty are engaged in a variety of roles through formal campus/community collaborations, and also serve as individual volunteers and civic leaders. The University community offers its resources and energy through community mentoring and engagement and, in return, is greatly strengthened by the essential knowledge and wisdom of the people and organizations with whom we have the honor to work.
University of Iowa Community Mentoring Programs
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- Academic Mentoring Program (AMP). The Academic Mentoring Program is designed to complement the role that parent(s) or guardian(s) and teaching staff play in a student’s life by providing adult mentors to students in select schools within the Iowa City Community School District. Mentors are caring individuals who, along with parents or guardians, help to provide students with support, counsel, friendship, reinforcemen,t and a constructive example ultimately building positive connections in the community for our students.
- Larned A. Waterman Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center. The Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center is an interdisciplinary collaboration to make more accessible educational and service programs focused on strengthening the operational capacity of Iowa nonprofit organizations.
- Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center. During the fall and spring semesters, interdisciplinary student teams are formed to complete advanced business projects for aspiring entrepreneurs and early-stage companies in the region.
- Pen Pal Program. The OI Pen Pal Program is an early intervention program and partnership between Opportunity at Iowa and Iowa grade schools from Cedar Rapids, Clinton, West Liberty, and Columbus Junction. University of Iowa faculty, staff and students write letters to and visit elementary-aged children throughout the academic year.
- Secondary Student Training Program. The Secondary Student Training Program provides opportunities for high school students to conduct research in a University of Iowa laboratory under the guidance of a faculty mentor.
- UI Speakers Bureau. Education travels far beyond the walls of the classroom at The University of Iowa. The UI Speakers Bureau provides speakers at no cost to service clubs, schools, senior centers, and other groups in communities across the state.
Related Resources and Other Volunteer Opportunities
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Johnson County/Eastern Iowa
- Big Brothers Big Sisters of Johnson County. Big Brothers Big Sisters mentors children, ages 6 through 18, in communities across the country including right here in Johnson County.
- Compeer of Johnson County. Compeer is a not for profit organization that matches community volunteers in supportive friendship relationships with adults receiving mental health treatment.
- RSVP (Retired Seniors Volunteer Program). RSVP is part of Senior Corps, a network of national service programs that matches the personal interests and skills of older Americans with opportunities in their community. RSVP is sponsored locally by Elder Services, Inc.
Out of State
- Indiana University - Telecom Alumni Mentor Program. A mentoring program that matches alumni with telecommunications students at Indiana University.
- Ohio State University - Three Alumni Societies. For alumni of the College of Education and Human Ecology, a chance to inspire undergraduate students in the program. They are to meet at least monthly and share inspiration and stories of success.
- University of Illinois
- Asian American Cultural Center Mentoring Program. A staff, faculty, student, and community mentoring program for Asian American students.
- Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations Alumni Mentoring Program. Graduate students are paired up with alumni from the program. The main goal is not to get a job or internship but to learn skills, advice, networking, job searching, HR strategies. Students and alumni might not actually meet face to face.
- Revitalise Mentor Workshop. The REVITALISE Program targets teams of middle and high school teachers in rural schools in Illinois and North Carolina to facilitate teachers' use of visual learning in the classroom.
- University of Minnesota - Alumni Mentors. The University of Minnesota Alumni Association sponsors the Mentor Connection, which trains alumni as mentors for various programs at the University. The UMAA Mentor Connection is not a mentor program in itself. It is a mentor program clearinghouse, which means that it helps enhance existing programs and establishes new ones. The Mentor Connection works in collaboration with UMAA alumni societies (collegiate units), University departments and community organizations. Currently, there are 16 different mentor programs with more than 2,090 students and 2,035 alumni participating in the UMAA Mentor Connection.