Eco April Alignment

The goal of the Tutor/Mentor Leadership and Networking Conferences is to draw together leaders from volunteer-based tutoring and/or mentoring programs, Community Technology Centers, arts programs, as well as leaders from business, universities, hospitals, and philanthropy, who will network and begin to work together to help existing tutor/mentor programs get the volunteers, dollars, and on-going leadership they need to connect with kids in these areas, while helping new programs form where none exist.

In the May 2008 conference we invite speakers who can share information and shine the public attention spotlight on the Drop Out Crisis (find links here).  We also invite leaders of volunteer-based tutor/mentor programs, from Chicago and other cities, to describe the work they do and show why such programs are important in a drop-out prevention and workforce development strategy.

Furthermore, we invite representatives of companies, hospitals and professional groups, who encourage volunteerism, via paid time off, or by leadership communications. Come and share your strategies so that others in your industry will encourage more of their employees to become involved in tutor/mentor programs in September 2008 as school begins throughout the country.

The conference offered two days of networking opportunities along with workshops on topics important to all volunteer-based tutor/mentor programs, such as planning, evaluation, management, volunteer recruitment and training, fundraising and nonprofit management. As the conference approaches we invite you to network with the T/MC via blogs, such as http://tutormentor.blogspot.com. Through this strategy we will build more interest in this topic, encourage participation in the conference, and motivate more people to be involved in tutor/mentor programs in Chicago and in other cities.

Because a primary focus of the conference is expanding the network of who people work with, and to help people stay connected after the conference, we have created an on-line attendee list. When you register, you can choose to be listed and this allows other people to see who is coming to the conference, and make plans to meet people they want to meet. This list will stay on-line after the conference, so you can follow up, and so that people who might not have been able to attend, can still become part of this network.

In addition, the T/MC encourages participants to introduce themselves prior to the conference by posting questions and articles Discussion Forums on the T/MC web site.

I hope members of Wiser Earth will help us build participation in this event and in on-line forums where we connect with others who are doing similar work.