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GUIDEBOOKMENTORMINNEHAHA LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE
HELLO MENTOR!Welcome! We are so gratefulthat you have accepted theinvitation from one of ourMinnehaha Leadership InstituteFellows to be a mentor. What agift it is to have you in their lives!The following pages willhopefully be a guide to you asyou walk alongside your studentmentor, encouraging them,listening to them, and sharingyour own life experiences andwisdom. WHAT IS A MENTOR?WHY MENTOR?Mentoring, at its core, guaranteesyoung people that there issomeone who cares about them,assures them they are not alonein dealing with day-to-daychallenges, and makes them feellike they matter. Mentors listen,are transparent, show integrity,care, and share expertise. Theyare a guide on this journey calledlife!Data shows that as the number oftrusted adults in a young person’slife increases, their reportedfeelings of loneliness, socialisolation, and stress decrease bya strikinginly significant degree!Healthy, supportive, and closeadult relationships are crucial toyouth success. Plus, it is fun!
What is the MLI?The MissionThe Minnehaha Leadership Institute exists to develop servant leaders, who,through God’s story of redemption, are striving to become whole and holypeople. Using a systematic process for leadership development, we willdevelop leaders who will use their gifts to glorify God and bring good to theirneighbor.The GoalsBuild a Community of Faithful LearnersFellows will join a cohort and complete a three-year leadership developmentcycle starting their sophomore year.Practice Fellowship, Hospitality, and LearningCohorts will meet twice a month to study, ask questions, and explore a themein the leadership curriculum.Meaningful MentorshipEach Fellow has a mentor and meets with them regularly. Mentors will helpstudents explore questions and guide them through the leadership program.Leadership in ActionEach student will have opportunities to practice what they are learning in theleadership cohorts on the stage, on sports teams, and in the classroom.
ROLE OF A MENTOROur Hope For YouOur hope is that this opportunity will lead to a deepening hopein the Gospel and to something that draws everyone closer toJesus. While we encourage you to have flexibility in yourmeeting with your mentee and follow where the Holy Spiritleads, we want to encourage you to aim for these four things:Check-In01A check-in is an opportunity to see how your mentee is doing, what theyhave been up to, and what they have been learning or struggling with. Afew questions to consider include: How is your mentee doing? What have been the highs and lows since the last time youtalked/met? What has your mentee been learning about in the Fellows Program?
Reflect/Select/Project02The book “Faith for Exiles” encourages us to use mentoring as anopportunity to help our mentees reflect and as a pathway for learningfrom the past and gaining wisdom, while sharing of ourselves, and alsolooking to the future (selection attached). You don't have to do all ofthis every time, but a few questions to consider could include: What things have happened to me that are worth pausing toreflect on? What did I learn about myself and others in this? Wheredid I see God at work? Where did I work with Jesus or against him?What do these choices mean for who Jesus is calling me to be andwhat he is calling me to do?What's going on now that needs attention, and what stories orexperiences from my own life could I share to shed some light?What's coming up for you that you'd like to think about or talkthrough? How can you practice wisdom now to be ready?Pray03We encourage you to take a little bit of time at the end of your meetingto pray with your mentee. It can be a prayer that follows a simple formatlike A.C.T.S. (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication) or asimple written out prayer like the following that you can pray together(we begin each meeting with this):In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy SpiritLord, make us whole and holy by your loveLord may we seek justice and righteousness as a caring communityLord, may we work for your glory and the good of our neighborUnto you, O Lord, this day I submit my head, my heart, and myhands.
Follow-Up04We'd like for you to visit/meet with your mentee three times thisschool year (fall/winter/spring), but would certainly encourage follow-ups & check-ins with your mentee more frequently. Is there somethingthey were working on or struggling with that you can follow-up with?Or a goal they set? Or you can just send a note to say hello and letthem know you prayed for them.We are deeply grateful for your work and partnership in this journey.May God do abundantly more than we could think or ask (Ephesians 3:14-21)!
GUIDELINESMENTEES (aka Fellows)Find a mentor who lives as you hope to liveFind someone older than you who has gonebefore you and can help to show you the way.In finding a mentor, look at someone furtherdown the road of life that you’d like to be likeAsk this person to be your MLI mentor Connect at least 3 times per year (fall, winter,spring). If you can connect with them once amonth, even better!Initiate meeting timesFOR STUDENTS AND MENTORSMENTORSEncourage the student’s walk withJesusBe attentive to Fellow’s questions Communicate with Fellows (notes,phone calls, Zooms)Meet three times per school year (fall,winter, spring) If you can connect withthem once a month, even better!Show them “how do you live this out?”
IDEAS FORThe Minnehaha LeadershipInstitute invites you to have ameal with your menteeduring their lunch hour atschool! Lunch is on us, justwork out a time with yourmentee and let us know! MENTORMEETINGSConnect overFood!Analog ConnectionTelephone Call Mail a letterWork on conversationalskills Read a book togetherEncouragement NotesDigital ConnectionZoom callsSharing podcastsSharing songs (create ashared playlist and shareyour favorite tunes)ActivityGo for a walk Play a card or boardgameFind a fun activity to dotogether - putt putt,bating cages, disc golf,bake cookies, etc.
1. What are the major chapters and events in your life so far thatstand out as especially important?2. Are there past relationships that have been important to yourdevelopment as a person?3. Do you recall any changes in relationships that have had asignificant impact on your life or way of thinking about things?4. How has your image of God and relation to God changed acrossyour life’s chapter? Who or what is God to you now?5. Have you ever had moments of intense joy or breakthroughexperiences that have affirmed or changed your sense of life’smeaning?6. Have you experienced hard times in your life? How have theseexperiences affected you?Faith DevelopmentQuestionsNot sure where to start? Here is a list of some great questions thatyou can be asking your mentee along your mentoring journey! Life Tapestry/Life Review
Relationships1. What relationships are important to you in your life right now?How and why are they important? 2. What groups, institutions, or causes do you identify with? Why doyou think that these are important to you?Present Values and Commitments1. What makes life meaningful to you? Do you feel that now?2. If you could change one thing about yourself or your life, whatwould you most want to change?3. Are there any beliefs, values, or commitments that seemimportant to your life right now?4. When or where do you find yourself most in communion orharmony with God or the universe?5. What is your image or model (an idea or a person) of maturefaith?6. When you have an important decision to make, how do yougenerally go about making it? Can you give me an example? If youhave a very difficult problem to solve, to whom or what would youlook for guidance?
7. Do you think that actions can be right or wrong? If so, whatmakes an action right in your opinion?8. Are there certain actions or types of actions that are always rightunder any circumstances? Are there certain moral opinions thatyou think everyone should agree on?Religion1. Do you think that human life has a purpose? If so, what do youthink it is? Is there a plan for our lives, or are we affected by a poweror powers beyond our control? 2. How would you describe your relationship with Jesus?3. What does death mean to you? What do you think happens to uswhen we die? 4. Do you consider yourself a religious person? What does thismean to you?5. Are there any religious ideas, symbols or rituals that areimportant to you, or have been important to you? If so, what arethese and why are they important?6. Why do you believe in God?
7. Do you pray, read Scripture, or practice any other spiritualdisciplines? Which would you like to grow in? How do you plan todo so?8. What is sin in your understanding?9. How do you explain the presence of evil in our world?10. If people disagree about a religious issue, how can such religiousconflicts be resolved?