Mentoring Specialist Charlevoix and Emmet Counties

About Bigs

For over 50 years, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northwestern Michigan (Bigs) has developed and supported one-to-one mentoring relationships for more than 16,000 children in our five-county region (Antrim, Charlevoix, Emmet, Grand Traverse and Kalkaska).

Through our commitment to quality and innovation, our team develops, monitors, and sustains caring and supportive, life-changing relationships between adult volunteers (Bigs) and youth (Littles). Our passion for our work has a direct and lasting impact on the lives of our youth and the adults who mentor them.

There are over 1,700 children in Charlevoix and Emmet Counties that need mentorship from a caring adult right now. If you believe in the motivational power of mentor ship, the Force is strong with you, so read on. Every Padawan needs a Jedi mentor, so in your role as Mentoring Specialist, you’ll provide leadership and training to volunteer mentors, parents, and youth ages six through adolescence to inspire them to reach their full potential (and avoid the perils of the Empire).

This position is located in Petoskey and reports to the Director of Mentoring with primary responsibilities including creating and supporting Bigs’ matches to ensure child safety, positive outcomes, healthy and satisfying relationships, and a strong sense of affiliation with Bigs.

Your regular responsibilities include:

• Responds to all calls and inquiries in a timely manner from potential volunteers and parents and provides appropriate information about program and enrollment.
• Maintains contact with potential volunteers throughout the enrollment process.

• Works collaboratively with the team in ongoing and robust child and volunteer recruitment plans, including the delivery of program presentations.
• Suggests and develops creative new ways for recruitment.
• Identifies potential new business partners to recruit volunteers/discuss mentoring opportunities.
• Attends and supports agency program and fundraising events, as appropriate and requested.

• Provides intake information to potential volunteers and families and evaluates eligibility according to agency policies.
• Assesses whether a potential volunteer is suitable for the program by facilitating reference checks, interviews, assessments, and home visits with volunteer applicants. Provides any concerns to the Director of Mentoring that might influence eligibility or acceptance into the
• Develops matches via thoughtful consideration of positive relationship potential and facilitates match meetings.
• Continually assesses match relationships through appropriate supervision contact with all parties according to agency and BBBSA Standards of Practice with the focus on: child safety, match relationship development, positive youth development and volunteer satisfaction. Ensures real and/or potential problems and/or barriers are identified and addressed and resolved as early as possible.
• Addresses and provides for individual training, resources and solution-focused strategies for each match participant to ensure a positive youth development experience for the child, and successful and satisfying experience for the volunteer and parent.
• Ensures any match issue(s) requiring additional leadership, guidance or support are brought to the attention of the Director of Mentoring.
• Maintains up-to-date, accurate and detailed documentation and database records of all interactions, according to Big Brothers Big Sisters standards.
• Develops, promotes and implements group match activities in order to support ongoing volunteer involvement with the child and agency. Keeps volunteers, parents and children apprised of opportunities to participate in educational, recreational, and cultural opportunities available to them as part of the Bigs’ program.
• Assesses reasons for match closure; conducts match closure procedures and potential re-match opportunities.
• Identifies and promotes re-engagement of volunteer mentors (where appropriate) whether as Bigs, potential board or committee members, and/or donors.

• Immediately reports all…