Now that everyone has settled into the year, our Mentorship Programme focus is to continue with providing support to all MENTOR/MENTEE relationships with the aim of increasing engagement and adding value to the mentorship pairs. We applaud all our mentors for their unwavering dedication and commitment to SSP scholars – the success of these relationships is an integral part of our impact, long after the scholars have left the programme.
Last year we hosted an interactive Mentorship Day event aimed at celebrating and recognizing our mentors for their contribution and dedication to the SSP scholars. We started the programme with a panel discussion which focused on the support provided by mentors in the development of our scholars – reflecting on experiences of mentors, challenges faced by scholars and how the different partnerships compliment the SSP mentorship programme in its focused mission of developing leaders. We concluded the event by recognizing mentors achievement and long service awards.
At this year’s graduation some mentors bid farewell to their Grade 12 scholars and celebrated their achievements with family, Heads of Schools and the SSP community at large. We had the pleasure to welcome new mentors who experienced the graduation ceremony for the first time as they looked forward to begin their mentor/mentee relationships. We are happy to welcome back mentors who signed up for being paired with new scholars and are especially appreciative of mentors who continue to guide their mentees beyond Grade 12. This is a mark of success for us in the mentorship programme.
As we start the new year, welcoming new Grade 8 scholars in the Eastern Cape, we are expanding our mentor recruitment in the region to enable the growing cohort of our SSP scholars to be paired with in-province professionals. For this reason, we would like to appeal to all our stakeholders to share the SSP mentorship opportunity with their networks, by distributing this link: Mentorship – SSP | Student Sponsorship Programme – we are calling on professionals and industry leaders in the Eastern Cape to volunteer their time to SSP scholars.
The Mentorship Programme is underpinned by the organizational mission of academic excellence, personal and leadership development, as well as career development. As such, SSP mentors are currently planning for the year ahead, starting with an in-depth analysis of the scholars’ academic performance at the end of 2022. This review will inform goal setting for the academic year ahead.
The following are some of the exciting mentorship activities you can expect:
- Setting long term and short-term goals.
- Exploring the world of work through job shadowing.
- Hosting a Mentor Workshop and Mentor Networking event.
- Career Day for Mentees
- Feedback Surveys & Individual Check-Ins with the Mentorship Manager
We are ready to get going with our super-star mentors for 2023. Stay connected for more news!