BEST Kids™ mentoring program uses comprehensive, integrated approaches to break the cycle of distrust and learned helplessness to which these children fall prey. BEST Kids provides each child with a close, one-on-one relationship with a caring adult who serves as a mentor and role model.

The program model is based upon research relating to the risk and resilience factors for children. This research indicates that one of the strongest single protective factors that a child can have is a close relationship with a caring adult who serves as a mentor and role model. A BEST Kids™ Mentor provides a level of personal interest and concern that invites trust and self-disclosure from the youth.

Early intervention.

BEST Kids™ Mentoring Program starts with fourth grade children.  Early intervention increases the likelihood that the children will develop trusting relationships and be susceptible to the influence of positive adult role models. 

Long-term relationships.

BEST Kids™ Mentoring Program is committed to provide mentors for these children as long as needed or until they become 18 years old. There is no quick fix. We will be there for them to guide their ultimate success into adulthood. We highly encourage and support continued involvement by our mentors until the child becomes 23 years old.

Peer group engaged in a positive experiential program.

The primary purpose of the peer group program is to facilitate the children’s ability to socialize successfully, broaden their horizons, and connect with their peers and with society. They will perform service projects in the community in which they live so they can experience the benefits of giving back and proudly sharing their accomplishments.

Serving foster care and group home children.

Long term consistent one-on-one mentoring is almost non-existent for foster care children. Foster children rarely have the opportunity to become valued members of a constructive peer group.

Same gender mentoring.

Typically the number of women volunteer mentors far outweighs the number of men, and many children in other programs do not have the benefit of same-gender matching. BEST Kids goes to extra lengths to match men with boys in order to provide a role model to which the young boys can truly relate. We also carefully consider the commonality of interests of the mentor and child, as well as their geographical proximity.

Intensive evaluations.

BEST Kids™ Mentoring Program is using a well-tested assessment that is completed by the teacher, caretaker, and child upon in-take and annually thereafter. Additional assessments as well as the child's report card provide us with a comprehensive description of each child’s strengths and weaknesses in the behavioral, social, cognitive, and academic domains. The results of this objective information is used to set behavioral, social, and performance goals that the mentors will promote in the coming year.

Partner with the Child’s School.

State and federal confidentiality laws preclude BEST Kids™ from having direct contact with a foster child’s school. Often the child’s teacher(s) and school typically have important information concerning each child. BEST Kids™ taps into this information and works to support the teacher and the learning process by working through the social worker assigned to each child. This requires the social worker and caregiver and subsequently the teacher to become more involved in the child’s academic life.

Partner with the child’s caregiver.

We believe the caregiver’s role is the most important role in each child’s life. In addition to respites from care giving, our mentors work hard to communicate effectively with each caregiver on a regular basis to help improve the child’s availability for positive relationships and learning. Our hope is that when a child is placed in a group home our mentors will advocate among their circle of friends and acquaintances to enroll future foster care and adoptive parents.

Advocate for the Child.

When a child is placed in a group home we encourage our mentors to advocate among their friends, colleagues, and acquaintances to enroll future foster care and adoptive parents.

BEST Kids™ will reach these children early and in a preventive, comprehensive and long-term way. By building a long-term bond with a well-trained and supportive adult mentor and attachment to a peer group, these children are more likely to develop the skills and self-confidence that will enable them to become productive adults. Our desire is to turn these children away form the path of learned helplessness to become resourceful citizens that value learning. Our ultimate goal is for these children to become gainfully employed or go to college.