Friends for Youth

About Us: Friends for Youth (FFY) is a nonprofit organization that has been matching underserved youth with caring adult mentors since 1979. FFY offers both 1-to-1 Mentoring across the Peninsula for ages 8-17, and Group Mentoring for students in 8^th-10^th grades.

Role Description: Friends for Youth is seeking passionate mentors to support students in our Group Mentoring programs. Mentors create a fun, welcoming environment where students can build positive relationships on campus, share and develop interests, and have relevant life discussions. The group ratio is about 2 mentors to 4 students.

School Sites in Redwood City: 8^th grade programs are held at Hoover Elementary School, Mckinley Institute of Technology (MIT) and Kennedy Middle School, and 9^th and 10^th grade programs are held at Sequoia High School. Sequoia High School and MIT are walkable from CalTrain.

 Responsibilities:

• Volunteer as a Group Mentor for 1-2 hours per week.
• The mentoring program runs from October-June. FFY often accepts new volunteers in January for their students' second semester.
• High School Mentors- Participate in a mentoring session every other Monday (with 9^th or 10^th graders). Sessions are held each 50 minute period between 8:30am-2:30pm.
• Middle School Mentors- Participate in a mentoring sessions for 8^th graders once every week on Wednesdays from 11:00am-12:00pm or 1:35pm-2:35pm or Fridays from 12:00pm-1:00pm.
• Arrive 10 minutes early to group sessions to prepare and stay 10 minutes afterward to debrief. 
• Attend at least 1 field trip each semester.
• Inform FFY Program Coordinator about updates and any issues.
• (Optional) Create and facilitate activities for mentoring sessions.

Qualifications:

• Volunteers must be at least 18 years old
• Complete the FFY mentor interview and application process
• Pass a DOJ and FBI Live Scan fingerprinting check through FFY and the school district
• Provide negative Tuberculosis (TB) test results from the last 4 years
• Attend a Mentor Training before starting to volunteer
• Have access to reliable transportation to and from school sites
• A desire to connect with youth facing adversity, academic disengagement and behavioral challenges
• Strong cultural competency and listening skills