RVM staff will reach out with payment options before of the training: you can pay with credit card, PayPal, check, or cash at the training.
Please note: there is no certification available for this training.
R ogue Valley Mentoring provides in-depth training in the art of strengths-based mentoring. We have trained more than 500 mentors and provided mentors to approximately 2,000 young people ages 10 to 24. The Mentor Training is only the beginning of a journey into learning about new and innovative ways to support and empower youth through mentoring. We also invite our partnering agencies in the community to come and do certified training with our mentors on subjects such as Suicide Prevention, Drug and Alcohol Use, and Bullying Education.
National research shows that mentoring relationships thrive when adult mentors receive adequate support and training from program staff. As a mentor, you will always have someone you can turn to when you have a question or concern—or when you just want a listening ear.
You will be invited to quarterly mentor support trainings, and have the option to attend monthly zoom meetings with RVM staff and other mentors, where you can give and receive support from other mentors. Circle mentors will receive addition training for working with groups of youth, and have the opportunity to pre- and de-breif each circle with their co-mentors
Volunteer Trainings are ~12 hours in total: you must attend all days of the training to be an approved youth mentor. Mentoring Essentials Training is required for all approved youth...
Volunteer Trainings are ~12 hours in total: you must attend all days of the training to be an approved youth mentor. Mentoring Essentials Training is required for all approved youth...
The RVM Team includes a clinical psychologist who acts as our Mentor & Youth Support Specialist, Lynn Chertkov, MSW: she provides on-going mentor support to our volunteer and staff mentors, and supports families in our 1:1 Match Program. The trainings are co-facilitated by our Lead Mentor, Jim Tully, and our skilled Match Specialist, Chelsea Beeler, provides on-going support to mentors and 1-to-1 matches, along with Lynn.
Learn more about them below, or meet the whole RVM Team here!
All RVM staff and volunteers are carefully background checked and vetted, then thoroughly trained in concepts and skills important to building resilience and empowering youth. Trainings including strengths-based communication, trauma-informed care, adolescent development, avoiding bias, youth mental health, suicide intervention, and de-escalation. All staff undergo on-going training, and background checks are conducted every 2 years.
Lynn came to RVM from the Washington, D.C. where she devoted her professional life to work with under-served children and their families. Graduating with a Masters in Social Work she established a cooperative preschool for working parents, and a center that provided after school and summer programs for children who needed specialized emotional support. Developing programs that boost children and families toward emotional health and well-being have been a driving force in her life. Living in the Valley she is finding time to paint, enjoy theatre and the outdoors while bringing her background in youth work to RVM. Training and supporting mentors, responding to schools who want to bring mentor circles to students and facilitating circles both enrich her life and that of others.
Jim is a Lead Mentor for Rogue Valley Mentoring; he is married, and the father of one son. Jim has volunteered for Rogue Valley Mentoring for over 5 years, and was offered a position on our staff in Summer, 2021. He has mentored several youth through our one-to-one match program, led school circles at Central Medford High School and Talent Middle School, and is currently co-facilitating Mentoring Essentials Trainings with Lynn! We are so lucky, and grateful, to have his support.
Jim is a retired Christmas Tree Farmer and corporate Sales Professional. He has been mentoring boys for approximately 10 years. Jim’s favorite past-times include reading, motorcycles, tennis, hiking, coffee breaks, and conversations with friends.
Chelsea grew up in Medford and is delighted to call this beautiful valley home. She studied at Pitzer College in Southern California, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in Organizational Studies, with minors in Spanish and Chican@/Latin@ Studies. Before returning to Oregon, Chelsea spent two years living in San Jose, CA, participating in community transformation in the same neighborhood where Cesar Chaves started his community organizing work. Chelsea comes to RVM with years of experience working with volunteers and with children who have experienced trauma and neglect.
She believes strongly in the power of community and connection, especially for youth. She enjoys backcountry backpacking, playing with her cats Cash and Bash, and renovating her 110 year old home.
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