Leaders from Marion County Public Schools and local nonprofit mentoring programs on May 22 presented a range of school-based and community mentoring efforts that serve hundreds of Marion County students and urged the board to support staffing, volunteer recruitment and clearer funding information.

The presentations, given during the Marion County School Board’s administrative briefing and work session, included an internal district program called Elevate Marion; Take Stock in Children’s scholarship-and-mentor program; Big Brothers Big Sisters; community-led groups including Dare to be Great, Girls on the Rise and Cut Different; and the Marion County Children’s Alliance SCIP program. Speakers gave program details including participation counts and outcomes and asked the board for clarity about district costs and support.

Why it matters: Mentoring programs are a district and community tool to address attendance, behavior and student engagement before formal mental-health or disciplinary interventions are needed. Board members asked for a consolidated summary of program costs, the number of students served, and funding sources so they can better evaluate district support and coordinate community partners.

Take Stock in Children reported long-running results: the county chapter serves cohorts of approximately 50 students per grade and this school year served 256 students across its cohorts, delivered 3,449 mentoring sessions so far, and awarded $330,000 in college tuition scholarships to the most recent graduating class. Program speaker Megan Magamal said the foundation also provides post-graduation support through Take Stock in College to help alumni continue toward degrees.

The district’s internal Elevate Marion mentorship program, described by district staff, focuses on middle-school students and uses the Search Institute’s 40 developmental assets. Presenters said cohorts launched in November 2022 and the program currently serves 16 sixth-graders, 10 seventh-graders and seven eighth-graders; district staff reported that the first Elevate cohort showed reduced absences and disciplinary incidents over time.

Community providers outlined different models and needs. Davita Randolph of the Howard Academy Community Center said Dare to be Great supports middle-school girls with a no-cost curriculum, community partners and mentoring; she announced a cotillion scheduled for July 19 at 4 p.m. at the Mary Sue Rich Center. Romica Gilmore, founder of Girls on the Rise Mentoring, said the group focuses on Black and Brown girls and described one recent crisis intervention when a high-school mentee reached out and staff intervened in person. Jamie Gilmore of Cut Different said his program serves 82 young men in five schools and reported preliminary reading-growth gains at several sites.

Marion County Children’s Alliance representatives summarized the SCIP (Supporting Kids Involving Parents) program, noting it receives Department of Juvenile Justice grant funds and this year served 266 youth for mentoring and tutoring; the speakers said the program’s recidivism rate was 2.5 percent among participants with prior juvenile justice involvement.

Big Brothers Big Sisters’ local manager, Susan Alexander, said their community- and site-based models run in the county and emphasized volunteer recruitment as the greatest barrier to scaling up services.

Board members pressed for a short summary chart the district can share with the public showing for each mentoring program: how many students served, funding sources (district general fund, grants, donations, partner support), staff or volunteer models, and any measurable outcomes. Board member James asked staff to produce “a cost and then how many students are served total” for each program and to identify the funding source (Title, grant, principal discretion or donations).

Ending: District staff said they will compile the requested cost and service tables and return to the board with more detail. Several board members and presenters urged more volunteer signups and community donations to expand programs across Marion’s large geographic area.