Building Learning Circles

Focused on Helping Inner

City Youth Move From
Birth to Work

This is Part of the Idea Library of

the Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC

Http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
Http://tutormentor.blogspot.com
Http://mappingforjustice.blogspot.com
Twitter - @tutormentorteam
 Connecting the Dots
This Presentations is based on Dan Bassill's leadership of
volunteer-based tutor/mentor programs from 1975 to 2011
and his leadership of the Tutor/Mentor Connection from 1993
to present.

Daniel F. Bassill
President and CEO
Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC

Bassill has used graphics like this since

mid 1990s to visualize long-term support
needed from youth tutor/mentor
programs to help inner-city kids through
school and into careers.

AND, the long-term funding needed to

support nonprofit youth organizations
who do this work.

Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net Pg 2

Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net Pg 3
Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net Pg 4
The Tutor/Mentor Connection focuses
daily on one big question:
What will it take to
assure that
all youth born in
poverty areas are
entering careers by
age 25?

What does it take to make

mentor-rich non-school
programs available to more
youth, in more places?

Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net Pg 5

All kids grow on the same 25
year time line:
School-Time Programs
High Career
Pre-K K - 5th 5th - 6th 6th - 8th
School Track

3-5 PM Non-School Programs After 5 PM and Weekend Programs

From birth to starting a career, takes about 25 years for most

kids. There are well defined stages along the way.

For kids living in concentrated, inner-city poverty, there are

extra challenges to reaching careers.

This seems like an obvious statement, yet in many parts of America the
systems helping EVERY youth make this journey are inadequate.

Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net Pg 6

Pg. 7
 Part of T/MC strategy is
to influence what
businesses do

Part of T/MC strategy is

to influence happens in Pg 7
youth serving programs
Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net
If Learning Circles form in many locations, these are
just a few of the questions that need to be asked, and
answered, to achieve this goal:
How do we help good programs be in more of the
places where they are needed?

How do we help each program have effective, long-

term leaders?

How do we increase the number of volunteers from

different work backgrounds who get involved, and
stay involved for many years?

How do we provide consistent, flexible, multi-year

funding in all locations, not just a few?

What is a “learning circle”?

A group of people with a common identity (same business, faith group,
college, etc.” who meet regularly to read and reflect, using a common
resource, e.g. the Bible, a college curriculum.

Pg 8
Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net
 This shows the four
strategies supported
by the Tutor/Mentor
Connection, and the
library of information
and ideas we host on
a network of web
sites.

See this presentation

at
tinyurl.com/TMI-TMLN

Pg 9
Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net
 At T/MC web sites we link to organizations that
represent specific areas of expertise. We call these
“hubs”

Fund Raising

T/MC Web Site

Volunteer
Recruitment

Tutoring
These hubs could be in different cities, or even info

different countries!

Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net Pg 10

 As HUBs link to each other more knowledge is
shared...

These are
Resources
available to Hub
people working
to help youth
move safely
through school Hub
and into
careers.

Hub

…and greater traffic circulates to each

organization in the network

Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net Pg 11

 …we
need to
To make do this,
this too
possible

Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net Pg 12

 Think like
a
General!

Planning Cycle:
http://tinyurl.com/TMI-PlanningCycle-cmap

Pg 13
Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net
Planning Needed concept map: http://tinyurl.com/TMI-Planning

Tutor/Mentor orgs for every age

group needed in every high
poverty area of any city….

Pg 14
Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net
 Teach leaders
to
“Think like a
General!”

Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net 15

This map was created in 1990s using donated ESRI software.

Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net Pg 16

This map story was created by a volunteer in Wisconsin, in the early 2000s.

Teach youth to create map stories like this.

“Tell Rest of the Story”
http://tinyurl.com/TMI-RestOfStoryInterns
Pg 17
This map was created in 2008 using donated ESRI software.

Read more about using maps: https://tutormentorexchange.net/mapping-the-programs

Also view, Using Maps in Violence Prevention - http://tinyurl.com/Maps-Violence-Prevention

Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net Pg 18

This is the goal:
Teams of volunteers at businesses, faith
groups, colleges, universities, public schools,
etc. can be using these ideas to help well-
organized non-school tutor/mentor programs be
available to k-12 youth in their own
neighborhoods and trade areas.

Volunteers from the same company can be

sharing what they are learning with volunteers
from other branches, in the same city, or
different cities, using Google groups, Hangouts,
Skype, Slack, etc.

Volunteers can also organize networking and

idea sharing that connects people, ideas and
resource from different companies with each
other.

Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net Pg 19

This was
created
between 2004
and 2008

4/2/2021 -
The Program
Locator is no
longer working.
View the archive.
Use as template
for building a
new version.

Use Tutor/Mentor Program Locator to create your own maps.

See archive at https://tinyurl.com/ProgramLocatorMap-archive
Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net Pg 20
Teams from Chicago companies, colleges, hospitals, etc. can create a map, starting with the Tutor/Mentor
Institute, LLC map shown at the link below. Zoom into any section of the city. Copy that to power point,
then add overlays showing your location, and highlighting tutor/mentor programs in that area.

This is current
version of
Chicago
Programs Reach out to existing programs.
Map * Help them communicate program goals, design, theory of change
on web sites and blogs

* Use bank advertising and PR strategies to educate others to be

volunteers and donors

* Identify areas where there are no programs, or no programs

serving specific age groups, and help new programs grow.

* Spend time on T/MC web site and blog learning about other youth
serving programs in Chicago and around the country and provide
talent to bring useful ideas to programs in your area

* Share the goal of helping kids grow up

View the current Chicago Tutor/Mentor Programs map at

https://tutormentor.blogspot.com/2020/02/help-youth-tutor-mentor-learning.html
Pg 21
Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) www.tutormentorexchange.net
 Get informed. Get involved.
Visit the following web sites to learn more about volunteer-based tutoring,
mentoring and strategies to build networks and support for programs in
multiple locations.

Http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
http://tutormentor.blogspot.com
http://mappingforjustice.blogspot.com
http://tutormentorexchange.net.wordpress.com

Connect on social media at these sites:

https://tutormentorexchange.net/social-media

or email: tutormentor2@earthlink.net Daniel F. Bassill

Founder, CEO
1993 to present
The ideas in this and other presentations I share are intended to
stimulate thinking to help others create Tutor/Mentor Connection-type
intermediaries in every big city where there are high concentrations of
poverty, as well as in rural areas and on reservations.

Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present)

7/31/15 Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) Pg 22