Girls Empowered by Mentoring (GEM)
An AAUW Mentoring Program for Young Women of the
Carrollton Farmers Branch Independent School District (CFBISD)
Early College High School (ECHS)
Operational Guidelines
Mission
Girls Empowered by Mentoring (GEM) is designed to bring together experienced women with young women in CFBISD Early College High School. These relationships are intended to empower the students to reach their full potential, navigate effective ways to continue their education and to build self-confidence. The young women will be referred to as “scholars”.
AAUW’s Diversity Statement
AAUW values and seeks a diverse membership. There shall be no barriers to full participation in this organization on the basis of gender, race, creed, age, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, or class.
Definitions
Mentor: An adult woman who is a member of AAUW, a resident or a member of a business, educational or community organization in the Metroplex.
The expectations of a GEM mentor include
- Commitment to guidelines and boundaries of the GEM mentoring relationship
- Participation in components of the program, e.g. orientation, joint sessions, and concluding program function
Before being assigned a scholar, an interested person must complete
- a CFBISD background check https://cfb.tx01.teams360.net/volunteer/EntryPointHomeAction.do
- a volunteer application form
- an interview with a GEM Steering Committee member
Scholar: A young woman enrolled at the Early College High School (ECHS) located at Brookhaven College.
A GEM scholar must meet the following criteria:
- Recommendation from the CFBISD ECHS principal, school counselor, or faculty member
- Completion of the sophomore year of high school
Procedural Policies
Scheduling Mentoring Time
- ECHS will dedicate to G.E.M. a specific time period on the same day two times a month to be used for group programs or for mentor/scholar sessions.
- During the 2016-2017 academic year, this dedicated time is 11:50 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Tuesdays.
- If the dedicated time is unavailable to the mentor, the mentor and scholar may choose a mutually acceptable alternative time.
- The mentor and scholar will meet twice a month unless there are extenuating circumstances. Mentor/scholar pairs will use Google Docs to communicate scheduling plans with Counselor Niki Fisher.
- All meetings with the GEM scholar will be on campus at Brookhaven College only. Any exception to this meeting place must be granted by the school counselor after all school guidelines for field trips are met.
Commitment to the GEM Scholars Program
The length of commitment by both mentor and scholar is one academic year in duration. At the end of each year, mentors and scholars will have the option to continue and to maintain the same pairing or to change their pairing or, if they prefer, to withdraw from the program.
GEM Steering Committee
The Steering Committee will plan and coordinate program implementation with the ECHS administration, market the GEM program to CFB AAUW members and the community, recruit and train mentors, and evaluate the program.
The Steering Committee is composed of
- A Chair appointed by the FBC AAUW president
- Farmers Branch-Carrollton AAUW members
- Businesswomen from the community not affiliated with CFB AAUW
The length of service for each member on the GEM Steering Committee will be a three-year term, staggered among the members. Steering committee members have no mandatory term limit.
Evaluation of program
The scholars and their mentors will complete surveys at the beginning of the program to establish individual goals and at the end of the year to assess attainment of goals.
- The Steering Committee will retain data on the scholars and their completion from high school and college.
- The Steering Committee will review the survey responses for ways to improve the program.
- A summary of these findings will be posted on the Farmers Branch Carrollton AAUW web site in aggregate form.
The G.E.M. Program application is available here: