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Red Clay highlights pilot peer-mentoring program for secretarial staff; presenters cite early positive results and national recognition
Summary
The Red Clay Secretaries Association and district HR staff reported positive results from a pilot peer-mentoring program for secretarial educational support professionals (ESP) and announced national and state-level presentations and an award recognizing the program.
On April 16, leaders of the Red Clay Secretaries Association and district human resources staff reported on a pilot peer-mentoring program for secretarial educational support professionals (ESP) and recommended continued support and expansion.
Naya Cruz, president of the Red Clay Secretaries Association, told the board the mentoring pilot concluded its first year and that the group wants to expand volunteer participation and community engagement. Cruz described the DSA’s monthly meetings at John Dickinson School and invited families and staff to the May 13 meeting.
Twanna (Tijuana) Swanson, lead mentor and a Human Resources staff member, provided implementation details: mentors must hold at least the administrative assistant II position (formerly titled "secretary") and have at least three years’ district employment; mentees are employees hired in the 2023–24 school year. The recommended interaction goal is at least one hour per month for ten months by phone, video or in person. Swanson said the district is the first in Delaware to implement this type of mentoring for secretarial staff and that the program received a presidential citation at the DSEA representative assembly and was showcased at both a state DSEA ESP conference and the NEA ESP National Conference.
Swanson said early feedback has been positive, and she described the program as a collaborative effort between the RCSA and district HR focused on retention and support; she also said a few eligible employees had resigned before the program’s implementation, which the program aims to address.
Board members thanked the association and HR for the initiative and for elevating recognition of front-line school professionals. No formal board vote was required to continue the pilot; board members encouraged continued public engagement and outreach to expand mentor participation.
Why it matters: The program is intended to increase retention among administrative support staff by creating peer supports and structured mentor-mentee interactions; the district framed the pilot as a potential model for other support-professional groups.
