Keeping Hope Alive: Mentoring African American Male Social Workers and Students

Authors

  • Jerry Watson

Keywords:

mentoring, mentor, social work, African American, YMCA, adolescent males

Abstract

In this article, I describe the forces that influenced my decision to become a social worker and mentor. I detail the relationship between growing up as a “Y Kid” and my decision to become engaged in the life-long mentoring process. While telling my story, I explore value-driven role modeling, the process of selecting mentees and mentors through attraction rather than promotion, and the concept of developmental networks. Finally, I share the lessons learned from more than fifty years of involvement in the mentoring process.

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Published

2017-08-31

How to Cite

Watson, J. (2017). Keeping Hope Alive: Mentoring African American Male Social Workers and Students. Reflections: Narratives of Professional Helping, 18(3), 20–26. Retrieved from https://reflectionsnarrativesofprofessionalhelping.org/index.php/Reflections/article/view/1613