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New Initiatives
Ginger Kaney Mentoring Institute
This year, Agape is adding an important new dimension: the Ginger Kaney Mentoring Institute. It targets eleventh and twelfth graders from the Bolton Road neighborhood. Unfortunately, many students drop out of high school and are left unprepared for the future. Of those who stay in school, very few receive the guidance they need to make informed college or career decisions. It is these issues that the Ginger Kaney Mentoring Institute, working closely with the North Atlanta High School counseling staff, seeks to address.
Ginger Kaney was Trinity's Director of Missions when the vision of a community center in the Bolton Road area was being realized. Ginger had a passion for urban ministry and was the guiding spirit in bringing Agape to fruition. She died in 2006. Her family wanted her memory to be perpetuated through a program which would “build community and empower individuals,” and they directed that her memorial fund be used to establish the Ginger Kaney Mentoring Institute.
The first goal of the Institute is to help students pass the Georgia High School Graduation Test, a graduation requirement. If a student is interested in college, the mentor will help him/her prepare for the SAT, identify scholarship opportunities, visit colleges and submit applications. For students not college bound, mentors will help them identify career options, training requirements, avenues for becoming certified in a trade, internships and on-the-job training. All students will be given a Career Assessment evaluation to help them discover areas of interest and to identify skills requirements.
Currently, the program consists of five students and five mentors. Every year, the program will expand to meet the needs of the students in the community. The mentors and students commit to meet at the Agape Center, four hours a month for one year, during the school year, with a two year follow-up. These committed mentors receive training to prepare them for their responsibilities. Agape provides on-going, dedicated support to the participants through training sessions and group activities, in which parental involvement is a requirement. Through workshops, students gain life skills, including goal setting, résumé preparation, time management, workplace conflict resolution and workplace success techniques.
If you would like to become a mentor volunteer, or to find out more about the Institute, contact Renita Robertson, Program Coordinator, at 404/367-3945.
