Program Overview and Background
Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Heart of Georgia (BBBS) offers structured, professionally supported, one-to-one mentoring programs that utilize evidence-based practices. The Mentoring for Change in Central Georgia Program will allow us to build on our past success to offer mentoring dedicated to youth affected by opioid and other drug misuse living in Central Georgia. We will serve 220 at-risk children ages 6-17 over a three-year grant period. Our program will positively impact these youths by helping them reduce risky behaviors, including drug use, enhance behavioral/personal development (increased selfesteem, improved school behavior, and better family relationships), and avoid further involvement with the juvenile justice system. As part of this program, we will enhance our existing programs by providing more structured activities and a greater focus on parent/family engagement, particularly specialized opioid and drug education programming provided by professional drug and mental health partners.
Program Services
- Match Support
- Initial and ongoing training for mentors
- Match and family engagement activities
- Referrals to other services
- Direct connection to substance misuse, support, and services
Target Population
We aim to provide mentoring under this grant to young people with any one or more of the following:
- Single Parent Household
- Academic Challenges
- Facing Discrimination based on Race, Ethnicity, or Gender
- Juvenile Justice Involvement
- Victimization
- Substance Impact or Misuse
- Rural Location
- Youth with Disabilities
Mentor Recruitment and Training
- 75 youth served under this grant
- 75 mentors recruited under this grant
- 75 matches
- Peer Mentoring included in programming
- For mentor recruitment, we target Peers (Youth), College Students, Adult Volunteers, Athletic Coaches, Law Enforcement Officers, and Military
- Duration of program services: Minimum of 1 year or through high school graduation
- Expected intensity of match contact: 6-8 hours a month
- Expected length of a match: Minimum of 1 year or through high school graduation
- Expected frequency of match contact: 2-4 times per month
- Number of training hours required before a mentor is matched with a youth: 2 hours
Grant Year: FY2022
Grant Category: Category 4 — Mentoring Strategies for Youth Impacted by Opioids and Drug Addiction (Project Sites)