Veteran Mentor Kimberly Delaney Finds Rewards, Perspective and Fun, in Multicultural Excellence Program
Once a month for the past 15 years, Kimberly Delaney has left her work as a project manager at HealthPartners to volunteer as a mentor at Central High School in St. Paul, Minn. Partnered with another mentor, Delaney leads a classroom of students through a curriculum of goal setting, mock interviewing, filling out applications, preparing resumes, interest inventories and career exploration.
With an increasingly competitive college application process, support and training for high school students is crucial. To see that minority students do not fall through the cracks, some Twin Cities professionals, like Delaney, volunteer as mentors for students in the Multicultural Excellence Program (MEP) through the St. Paul Public Schools.
Beginning in 9th grade, motivated students who meet grade point requirements may apply to join the MEP mentoring program, which accepts 220 students per grade. The goal of the MEP mentoring program is to ensure that talented students of color receive the guidance and support they need to get in to, and succeed at, college.
Although the time students spend in the MEP classroom is focused on serious “real world” topics, Delaney emphasizes the importance of integrating fun activities. Recently, students read and responded to poetry about identity, and created brochures about their dream businesses.
“A lot of the kids need time to open up a little,” said Delaney. “So we do fun exercises. We talk about values, responsibilities, that kind of thing.”
Recruiting other volunteers
Delaney began volunteering as a mentor in her 20s, when she was still new to her career. “It was hard for me to believe that I could give them something,” said Delaney. “Today if I can leave those kids with just one thing, then I feel like I’ve done my job.”
With experience and more confidence under her belt, Delaney relishes the impact she can have in the students’ lives. “I get charged up being with these kids, fostering their excitement for what’s out there.”
As students clamor to enter the MEP program, demand for mentors is high. Delaney encourages her colleagues at HealthPartners to donate their time like she has. With the support of senior leaders at HealthPartners, Delaney spearheaded an effort to recruit more mentors. This year eight new colleagues signed up as mentors.
Delaney can assuage the fears of those worried their backgrounds might not be suited for a classroom—she says the best tool a mentor can have is an open mind.
A first-time mentor might find the task of motivating a classroom daunting, but Delaney emphasizes that the rewards are well worth the input. “I learn so much in the classroom that I can take home,” said Delaney. “Working with my students gives me such a different perspective on life.”
