JOB TITLE: MentorCorps Fellow-Mentoring the Mentor
REPORTS TO: Manager of School-Based Programs/Program Development Coordinator
SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY: None
FLSA STATUS: Part-time, non-exempt
COMPENSATION: $22/hour
LOCATION: Nashville, TN
BIGGER AND BETTER TOGETHER
About Us
For over 50 years, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Middle Tennessee has served young people in the Middle TN region. Our work supports our belief that every child has the ability to succeed and thrive in life. Big Brothers Big Sisters makes meaningful, monitored matches between adult volunteers (Bigs) and youth (Littles). Through our commitment to quality, innovation, and the passion we have for our work, we develop and sustain positive, life-changing relationships that have a direct and lasting impact on the lives of our youth and the adults who mentor them.
Our Mission is to create and support one-to-one mentoring relationships that ignite the power and promise of youth. As noted by our Vision, we are driven by a future in which all youth achieve their full potential.
WE ARE AN AGENCY THAT CELEBRATES DIFFERENCES
We show each other dignity through our partnerships, decisions, and language. We intentionally engage, represent, and partner with our diverse communities. We demonstrate our values by learning together with staff, board, volunteers, youth, families, and investors to think and act with sensitivity and intentionality. Driven by the voice of our stakeholders, our agency develops responsive and respectful programming and builds strategic and thoughtful alliances. We want people of all backgrounds to see themselves represented and included in our work, so we actively seek to diversify our team and bring more voices to the table.
WE PRIORITIZE THE WELL-BEING AND PROFESSIONAL GROWTH OF OUR TEAM
We know that teams perform at their highest when they feel supported and that they belong. Each of our team members brings unique perspectives and skills, and we are committed to building a culture where voices are heard, differences are celebrated, and everyone has the opportunity to do meaningful work. At Big Brothers Big Sisters of Middle TN, you will be inspired by talented, passionate colleagues who will motivate you to do and be your best. We have built an environment focused on meaningful and supportive relationships. We see our team as more than just employees – we know and respect them as people. We are honored to have been selected as one of the Nonprofit Time’s Best Nonprofits To Work For in 2024 and named a 2024 Inclusive Workplace by the Best Companies Group and COLOR Magazine. We are bigger and better together!
About the Role
Each employee at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Middle Tennessee helps extend the agency’s mission in particular ways, as outlined in the position description. The essential functions of the position include but are not limited to the following: As a youth-serving agency, we work at the request of the young people enrolled in our programs to find them the mentors that they want and need – mentors that can ignite their potential and have lived experiences that youth can identify with. To meet the needs of our clients – the youth we serve, we have launched a new initiative: The MentorCorps Fellowship. The MentorCorps Fellowship is a paid fellowship that seeks to expand the impact of mentorship by matching highly sought-after mentors with multiple youth in our programs while also completing a capacity-building project for our High School Bigs program that will allow our agency to better serve our participants in the future. This is an 18-month position (January 2025-July 2026). It follows a part-time schedule of up to 20 hours of work a week. BBBSMT’s High School Bigs program matches local high school students as “Bigs” with an elementary school “Little.” The matches are supervised by BBBSMT staff and they meet on a weekly basis at the designated site to play board games, work on school work, and hang out together. High School Bigs participate in training known as “Mentoring the Mentor” where they receive targeted support to guide them in providing efficient mentorship to their Little. These programs run in Robertson County and Rutherford County. Occasional travel to these school sites is required.
Day to Day:
Capacity-Building Project (~10 Hours a Week)
- Collaborate with our School-Based team to build out our “Mentoring the Mentor” training for the High School Bigs program.
- Gather student feedback to evaluate the needs of our High School Bigs to guide training development.
- Research mentoring and relationship development materials that are age-appropriate for high school students.
- Research college & career readiness materials and scholarship opportunities.
- Find ways to cultivate and amplify youth voices within the training development process.
- Create “Mentoring the Mentor” training curriculum, and build out a training delivery model.
- Develop a system to track the “Mentoring the Mentor” completion rate.
- Develop a plan to ensure that the “Mentoring the Mentor” training can be maintained with full-time staff.
- Work with staff to ensure participating mentors have taken the Hemmingway Survey of Adolescent Connectedness at the start and end of the school year.
- Implement “Mentor the Mentor” training for the 2025-26 school year.
- Provide guidance and support to High School Bigs.
- Participate in 1:1 check-ins with supervisor. 1:1 Youth Mentoring (~10 Hours a Week)
- Serve as a 1:1 mentor to up to 10 youth (“Littles”)
- Complete mentor orientation & interview before matching and interacting with Littles.
- Engage with each Little in a 1:1 match weekly in-person or via virtual mentoring platforms.
- Support youth’s attendance, academic performance, and behavior in school.
- Be a supportive, positive role model.
- Apply best practices for child safety, interaction, and engagement with Littles.
- Exhibit open and affirming behavior and active listening.
- Acknowledge Littles strengths, talents, and gifts and encourage them to find ways to use them.
- Display enthusiasm, patience, and understanding of Littles.
- Participate in monthly match support with BBBSMT staff and accept coaching, feedback, and training as needed.
Professional Development
- Participate in monthly professional development meetings with Program Development Coordinator.
- Engage in professional development according to growth areas identified by BBBSMT staff and self-evaluation.
- Assist staff across the programs team in facilitating group mentoring work, as needed.
