Mentorship from within the community holds great promise for transforming the lives of young people and helping them to take full advantage of educational opportunities. This article discusses the CAMFED (Campaign for Female Education) Learner Guide program, which provides mentors and role models trained by a pan-African network of women leaders.

In 2019, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC's) Youth Risk Behavior Survey found that 8% of youth in grades 9-12 reported being in a physical fight one or more times in the 12 months preceding the survey, with more than 7% reporting being threatened or injured with a weapon on school property. Homicide is the 3rd leading cause of…

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore how educators describe strategies used in contributing to the self-esteem of adolescent middle school girls. It was not known how educators describe strategies used in contributing to the self-esteem of adolescent middle school girls. The theoretical framework for this study was the…

This study examined the negative adult characteristics and practices that prohibit connection between youth and nonparental adults. Racially/ethnically diverse youth from five community-based out-of-school-time programs participated in focus groups on youth-adult relationships. Analyses revealed that the following adult characteristics and…

To engage more youth in service, we require further research on the characteristics of youth who serve, particularly disadvantaged youth with limited access to formal service opportunities. This study investigated the positive youth development characteristics of New Zealand youth who decided to mentor younger peers in the Stars program for the…

This article embeds the study of character development within the two-decades-long research program framed by the Lerner and Lerner model of positive youth development. Character development involves attaining the feelings, thoughts, and skills needed to act coherently across time and place to serve self and others in mutually beneficial, positive…

Children from low-income backgrounds are less likely to have economically successful role models and mentors in their own families and neighborhoods, and are more likely to spend time with media. In this article, Melissa Kearney and Phillip Levine review the theoretical and empirical evidence on how these external forces can influence children's…

The New York City Young Men's Initiative (YMI) is a cross-agency initiative that aims to address the disparities in socioeconomic outcomes between young Black and Latino men and their peers. In support of this vision, the New York City Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) launched a mentoring program in its Cornerstone Community…

In this article, we describe a qualitative study that explored university students' perspectives on themselves and others. Twenty-one students engaged in a photovoice project as part of a psychology capstone with a service-learning component. The project focused on students' experiences and perspectives regarding their service to marginalized…

This study examines the ways that participation in youth organizing groups while in high school impacts the educational and civic trajectories of young adults. The study, conducted by UCLA Professor John Rogers and USC Professor Veronica Terriquez, compares the experiences of former members of youth organizing groups to those of a randomly…

This study tells the story of the transformation of a substantial group of young people. Today they are exemplary civic leaders. A significant number of them hold public office or are church leaders, such as pastors. More than one third are professional educators or youth workers. Almost all are leaders in their families, workplaces, and…

American children represent a great untapped potential in our country. For many young people, choices are limited and the goal of a productive adulthood is a remote one. This report paints a picture of who these children are, shares their insights and reflections about the barriers they face, and offers ways forward for Big Brothers Big Sisters as…

This issue of "Public/Private Ventures (P/PV) In Brief" is based on "High School Students as Mentors," a report that examined the efficacy of high school mentors using data from P/PV's large-scale random assignment impact study of Big Brothers Big Sisters school-based mentoring programs. The brief presents an overview of the findings, which…

A successful Portland (Oregon) program creates mentoring adult relationships in the lives of high-risk children. Paid staff members sign a contract to work with up to eight children for 10 years, beginning at age 6-7, providing positive adult role models; early intervention; and opportunities for the children to explore talents, learn life skills,…

Planned mentoring programs, which purposefully link disadvantaged youth with someone older and more experienced, have become a popular means of providing adolescents with adult contacts, counselors, and role models. Mentoring programs vary widely in their objectives, and in the duration, frequency, and intensity of the planned relationship. The…