EDU Community Mentoring Program: 2025 Mentoring Guide

Table of Contents

1. Introduction to the Mentoring Program
2. What Is Mentoring?
3. Roles & Responsibilities
4. Key Phases of the Mentoring Relationship
5. Essential Mentoring Skills
6. Structuring Your Mentoring Sessions
7. Communication & Feedback
8. Addressing Challenges
9. Tools & Resources

1. Introduction to the Mentoring Program

The EDU Community Mentoring Program is designed to foster professional and personal development and growth through structured, voluntary relationships between experienced mentors and developing mentees. This guide supports both mentors and mentees throughout their journey, offering insights, best practices, and actionable tools for a successful experience.

2. What Is Mentoring?

Mentoring is a confidential and voluntary developmental relationship built on mutual trust and respect. In this relationship, a mentor offers guidance, support, and encouragement based on their experience and perspective, while a mentee engages proactively in their own development journey. Effective mentoring is not hierarchical or evaluative. It differs from coaching, which tends to be performance-driven, and from sponsorship, which focuses on career advancement through advocacy. Instead, mentoring is centered around learning, reflection, and growth. Successful mentoring relationships are dynamic and reciprocal, where both parties learn from each other and develop new skills and perspectives.

Confidentiality & Trust

Confidentiality is a cornerstone of a successful mentoring relationship. Both mentors and mentees should feel safe to share experiences, challenges, and reflections without fear of judgment or breach of trust. What this means in practice: Information shared in mentoring sessions should remain between the mentor and mentee unless explicit consent is given to share it elsewhere.

Respect professional and personal boundaries.

If issues arise that require external support (e.g. wellbeing, misconduct), they should be handled with discretion and raised to the program administrators via email or the discord.

This mutual respect for confidentiality builds the foundation for honest dialogue and deep learning.

3. Roles & Responsibilities

Mentors:

• Share experiences and expertise
• Listen actively
• Provide feedback and encouragement
• Challenge and support mentee growth
• Promote professional networking

Mentees:

• Set personal and professional goals
• Be proactive and open to feedback
• Prepare for and engage in meetings
• Act on development suggestions
• Reflect on feedback and take ownership of growth

4. Key Phases of the Mentoring Relationship

1. Build Trust: Share stories, agree on expectations, set logistics
2. Collaboration: Share experiences, challenge ideas, co-create strategies
3. Growth & Action: Deepen discussions, track progress, expand network
4. Closure & Redefinition: Review achievements, plan next steps, transition the relationship

5. Essential Mentoring Skills

For both mentors and mentees:

Active Listening:

Pay close attention to what the other person is saying without interrupting. Use nonverbal cues, maintain eye contact, and show engagement. Reflect back what you hear to ensure understanding. You can read more about this here.

Open-Ended Questioning:

Ask thoughtful questions that encourage deep reflection and conversation. Examples include: “What would success look like for you?” or “What’s holding you back?”

Feedback Delivery and Reception:

Use the FAIR model:

• Facts: Describe the behavior you observed.
• Affect: Share how it impacted you or others.
• Interpretation: Offer a perspective without assuming intent.
• Request: Suggest a possible change or action.

Mentees should be open to this process, ask for feedback regularly, and demonstrate appreciation for it.

Cultural Humility:

Recognize and respect individual differences in background, identity, and values. Stay open, curious, and nonjudgmental in your interactions. Avoid assumptions.

6. Structuring Your Mentoring Sessions

Suggested Format for a 1-Hour Meeting:

1. 5–8 min: Catch-up and review goals — share recent experiences or updates.
2. 15–20 min: Focus on a specific challenge, opportunity, or reflection point.
3. 10–25 min: Explore broader topics like career aspirations, skill development, or decision-making.
4. 5–6 min: Review what was discussed, share feedback, and agree on next steps.

For a shorter check-in meeting, focus primarily on reviewing progress and on any specific challenges currently being faced.

Tips for Productive Meetings:

• Set an agenda together ahead of time.
• Create a psychologically safe space where questions, uncertainty, and honest dialogue are welcome.
• Keep notes to track insights, ideas, and agreed-upon actions.
• Use asynchronous check-ins between meetings if needed — email or messaging tools can help maintain momentum.
• Environment: Choose a neutral, quiet, and private space — whether in person or online. Eliminate distractions, turn off notifications, and be fully present.

7. Communication & Feedback

Effective Communication:

• Speak clearly and honestly.
• Demonstrate empathy and understanding.
• Use inclusive language and be mindful of tone.
• Ask clarifying questions to prevent misunderstandings.

Giving Feedback:

• Be timely — don’t delay giving constructive feedback.
• Be specific — focus on behaviors and impact, not personality.
• Be balanced — mix positive reinforcement with areas for growth.
• Be invitational — frame it as a dialogue, not a judgment.

Receiving Feedback:

• Assume positive intent.
• Avoid defensiveness — listen fully before responding.
• Ask for examples or clarification if something isn’t clear.
• Thank the person for their insight and reflect on how to apply it.

Feedback Prompts:

• “How do you think that went?”
• “May I share an observation I think might help?”
• “What would you do differently next time?”
• “What’s one thing I could do better to support you?”

8. Addressing Challenges

Common issues and how both roles can respond:

Lack of time:

Agree on realistic frequency and stick to scheduled meetings. Consider shorter, focused check-ins when needed.

Mismatch of styles or expectations:

Have a candid conversation about communication preferences, working styles, and what each of you values in the relationship.

Over-dependence or disengagement:

Mentors should avoid solving problems for the mentee — instead, ask guiding questions.

Mentees should take responsibility for setting the agenda and following through on goals.

Unclear or evolving goals:

Revisit your original agreement or charter. Use reflective questions like: “What’s changed since we began?” or “What would success look like in the next few months?”

If challenges persist, either party can seek guidance from program coordinators or request a facilitated check-in.

9. Tools & Resources

Def con Intro Meeting:

• Share personal and professional backgrounds
• Discuss motivations for joining the program
• Share one interesting fact or trivia about you
• Figure out a time to have a first full meeting (bonus points for finding a spare hour to do it in person during con)

First Full Meeting Toolkit:

• Review personal and professional backgrounds in a bit more detail
• Discuss motivations for joining the program
• Clarify mutual expectations and boundaries
• Agree on logistics: frequency, format, duration, communication methods
• Identify initial goals or areas of focus
• Exchange contact information and add as discord friends, plus any other communication methods you wish to use
• Create a shared document or log for notes and follow-up

Reflection Questions & Conversation Starters:

• What are you most proud of this month?
• What challenge has stretched you recently?
• What are your short- and long-term goals?
• What feedback have you received lately?
• What would you do if you weren’t afraid of failing?
• What assumptions might you be making?
• Who inspires you and why?
• What skill or topic would you like to develop further?
• What’s one thing you’d like to reflect on before our next meeting?
• How can I support you better?

You’re all set to grow and support growth. Thank you for being part of the EDU Community Mentoring Program!

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