Send in the Marines!

When I was training as a U.S. Marine officer in the mid-1980s, my instructors imparted a lesson that, while culturally characteristic of that fighting organization, has stuck with me to this day. When faced with almost any sort of a tactical or operational challenge, the answer is to attack – and not just point at the enemy and shoot, but aggressively attack with a vengeance and with spirit.

That same ethos needs to be brought to bear on the dropout epidemic. We must attack, attack and attack again. This bias for action must define our response – or we will lose another generation while we study, dither and debate.

Guiding Principles – Youth-oriented Solution-focused

The ethical considerations discussed above guide the practice of mentor/coaching regardless of what approach is taken when talking with youth. Whether using cognitive, behavioral, motivational, humanistic, or other techniques in working with adolescents, one still need to have ethical principles to guide your implementation of these techniques.

In addition to a set of ethical guidelines, you also need to have a general approach or theory of behavior change. In this manual we will discuss techniques that come from many theories of behavior change. For example, we will discuss active listening from a client-centered perspective, reframing from a narrative perspective, cognitive restructuring from cognitive-behavioral perspective, and evaluating alternatives from problem-solving perspectives. Each of these techniques can be helpful, but when and how they are used must be based on an understanding of behavior change.

For example, an adolescent who has says he thinks the mentoring program is worthless is not going to respond well to any advice giving. He’s already had a lot of advice given to him, and he doesn’t like you enough to listen to your advice. You may need to actively listen at this point with him. On the other hand, if he has a great relationship with you and asks you for your advice and you tell him to think about the pros and cons of each possible decision (never give direct advice on which action to take – that’s not your role as a mentor/coach), then he may do as you suggest and list pros and cons and make a good decision. Knowing which approach to take at what time is important in your job as a mentor/coach.

The guiding principles or theories for behavior change we will be using in this manual are youth-oriented, solution-focused principles. Let’s take a look at each of these terms.

Once an adolescent is referred to the Right Back on Track Mentoring Program (RBT), he or she knows that the goal is to stay in school. While school attendance is an important overarching goal, it should not be the primary goal for the mentor/coach. Research indicates that an over-focus on making sure the youth is in school is detrimental to the mentor/coach – youth relationship. The adolescent already knows that everyone wants him or her back in school. All the adults in his or her life have said the same thing. But few adults have asked the adolescent about his or her goals. Perhaps they want to get a driver’s license, play the flute in the school band, get a job, become a beautician, or be the first in their family to finish college. By keeping a youth-oriented focus, the mentor/coach engages the youth by considering what the youth wants. Most adolescents have hopes and dreams. Some have given up or can’t even imagine anything good. Helping the youth examine possibilities can give them hope.

Solution-focused approaches turn the standard problem-solving approach around. In problem-solving a problem is identified and then methods to solve that problem are developed and evaluated. Learning problem-solving techniques can be very helpful, but they are, by definition, problem-focused. Just thinking about problems can be overwhelming for these adolescents. The solution-focused approach starts with the solution and works backwards. First start with the goal you want and then figure out how to get there. Sometimes you can rephrase this as thinking about what everything would look like if life was going well. Then you think about what steps need to be taken to get where you want to go – to make everything look like you want it to be. Throughout the process there will be problems that crop up that need to be solved, but the focus should remain on the goal and what positive steps need to be taken to get there. The solution-focused approach helps keep things from being problem saturated. One problem after another becomes overwhelming. One step towards the solution is exciting and rewarding.

As you work with youth, always keep in mind that this is for the youth and they must have buy-in to the process for it to work. Helping them develop goals and work towards those goals, rather than just trying to solve one problem after another, can give them a sense of accomplishment and ability.

Sometimes a youth’s goals may seem ridiculous or foolish. They may tell you their goal is to get out of school, which is something they had been doing quite successfully. But there is always some other goal they have, even if they can’t express it. Sometimes it may seem irresponsible, like hanging out with friends and smoking marijuana every day. But exploring their goal with them can be very enlightening. What would it look like if they spent all day hanging out with friends? What other goals would go along with that goal? There are many ways to help them think about their goal, and over time they will add goals and rethink what they would like. Even exploring what other goals they have had at other times in their lives can help open up new paths. In all cases, the solution-focused approach is open and interested. No matter how ridiculous the adolescent’s ideas may seem to you, never be dismissive or respond with sarcasm.

Being youth-oriented and solution-focused does not mean that whatever the youth says goes. Setting rules and guidelines, such as the youth carrying a cellular unit every day, talking together with their mentor/coach three times a week, and the mentor/coach contacting school personnel about program compliance, are all important components of the program. Indeed, setting consistent guidelines that everyone is expected to follow gives these youth structure, organization, and consistency. However, it is your ability as mentor/coach to connect with youth in a respectful, accepting way about something important to the youth that paves the path to success. Threats, punishment, or shaming youth are not paths to successful behavior change. No one ever got better because others pointed out all of their flaws. People improve by building on their strengths.

Former Judge Penn Joins DTPN

Former San Antonio Judge Linda Penn knows the challenges of running a truancy court. She knows how to adjudicate cases that would infuriate, sadden and frustrate the rest of us.

I am so very excited to announce that Linda is joining the team at DTPN at DTPN. As President, Judicial Services, Linda will lead the effort to let judges and law enforcement leaders know that there is a new and innovative service tool to address the truancy problem and dropout epidemic.

Fifth Rule for Mentoring/Coaching Youth

1. Respect the youth’s rights and dignity

Mentor/coaches should respect the rights and dignity of all persons with whom they work. Although the mentor/coach relationship does not have the same legal protections as a doctor-client relationship, every attempt should be made to respect the youth’s rights and make clear to him or her limits of the relationship.

· Mentor/coaches should try to understand youth’s personal goals, desires, and values and not undermine their ability to make their own decisions.

· Confidentiality issues: mentor/coaches should inform youth of limits of confidentiality. The mentoring/coaching relationship does not have the same rights to confidentiality as a therapist/doctor-patient relationship. Mentor/coaches may have to disclose information to parents or proper authorities, and these limits on disclosure should be explained to the youth. Other than parents and proper authorities, such as judges, school counselors, direct supervisors, or clinical consultants involved directly with the case, information gained through the mentor/coach relationship should remain confidential. No information about a youth should be disclosed to a mentor/coach’s own family, friends, or colleagues unless that person is directly involved with the mentored youth. If a situation is discussed in training settings with other mentor/coaches, then all attempts must be made to hide identifying information. In all cases, youth’s disclosure of intention to harm themselves or others and acknowledgement or suspicion of any abuse or neglect should be reported to the proper authorities.

Fourth Rule of Mentor/Coaching Youth

Act with integrity

Mentor/coaches bear responsibility for finding ways to effectively and consistently communicate with youth, to honor plans and commitments, and seek guidance and consultation from the program if they are unable to do so. Guidance and consultation with appropriate professionals (e.g., program trainers, other mentor/coaches) is vitally important in ethical decision making. If you don’t know what to do, consult with others before acting.

Third Rule of Mentor/Coaching Youth

Be trustworthy and responsible

Always follow the program guidelines and be aware of your responsibilities to the youth and the program. Be aware of:
• program guidelines and procedures
• your responsibilities for meeting (phone contact) frequency and duration
• how to establish, maintain, and terminate mentoring/coaching relationships

Second Rule of Mentor/Coaching Youth

Promote the youth’s welfare and safety

The second guiding ethical principle is promoting the welfare and safety of the youth. There are a number of components to consider when considering how to best promote their welfare and safety:
• Build rapport with the youth’s primary caregivers to develop understanding of family circumstances, belief systems, and expectations for the child. Because the Right Back on Track mentoring/coaching program is unique in that it is done through phone mentoring/coaching, rapport building with caregivers can be more challenging than face-to-face mentoring/coaching. However, contact with school counselors can help bridge this gap. Building rapport and connections with the youth’s support systems improves the youth’s chances for success.
• Obtain ongoing training to expand your cultural knowledge. In addition to formal training on working with youth from different cultural backgrounds, it is important to understand the youth’s perspective on his or her life and culture. It can be helpful if you have a similar background to the youth, but remember that regardless of the similarities, the youth has his or her experiences that must be understood.
• Clear and appropriate boundaries: mentor/coaches should be aware of multiple roles and mindful of situations in which youth make disclosures or raise concerns that would be better handled by a parent or professional (e.g., psychologist, physician) and encourage the youth to take his or her concerns up with them. Mentor/coaches are not parents, licensed counselors, clergy, or friends with the youth there are mentoring/coaching.