Friends For Life Seeks Mentors & Mentees For 2025-2026 Program

COACH Kids of Clinton County is currently seeking proactive mentors and mentees for the upcoming Friends for Life program this year.

The Friends for Life program is COACH Kids' newest program that offers curriculum-based programming for high school students to provide them with the resources and information necessary for success after high school, whether their plans are to attend college or trade school or transition into the workforce.

Mentors and mentees are expected to meet for one hour, once a month outside of school for programs at various locations in Clinton County. During the meetings, matches will be presented with resources and information that can be beneficial to both of them while also exploring new locations that they may have never seen prior.

This year, Friends for Life will work slightly differently as meeting dates have been preset, but meeting topics may change based on availability, timing and more. The changes will allow for more dynamic presentations catered to the group of high school students who participate. This year, only a few topics will be returning from previous years with a plethora of new topics for matches to enjoy together.

2025-2026 Friends for Life Schedule (All Meetings Are 6 p.m. - 7 p.m.):

Aug. 27: Mentor Training

Sept. 17: Ice Breakers Activity: Expectations and Outline of the Year

Oct. 22

Nov. 12

Dec. 10

Jan. 21

Feb. 18

March 18

April 15

May 13: End of Year Celebration

This year's topics may include:

College preparedness, which would cover how to complete an application, how to write a college essay, how to choose a major, why college may be the right choice for you, how to prepare as a younger student, how to get letters of recommendation and more. During the college preparedness night, representatives from local institutions may be present to answer questions. Essays may also be submitted for peer review or review by COACH Kids staff as well prior to submission.

Common sense night, which would include information on auto care, such as changing a tire, changing windshield wipers, checking oil levels and more, completing basic tax forms, with information on job-related tax forms such as W-2s and 1099s as well as withholdings and more, balancing a checkbook, rules of the road, which could be beneficial for those who have not taken drivers education or those who may need a refresher, and more.

Safety, which would include information on how to remain safe in various situations, such as on-campus, online, in dorms or apartments, and more, as well as provide resources if reporting of incidents is ever necessary. This night will be held in collaboration with one of our local law enforcement agencies. This topic is a returning topic from last year's program and is highly requested amongst mentors and mentees who participated.

Financial aid and financial stability, which would include resources from local organizations who provide financial aid for furthering education, including scholarships, information from local bank representatives regarding various accounts that could be set up to begin building toward a prosperous financial future, credit checking and how to build credit and more, and information from accounting representatives who would detail the various services and resources available for those in need of assistance with accounting. This night may also include information regarding the FAFSA process.

Strength Finders, which covers the Strength Finders test that aids in deciphering the strengths of every individual in the program, including mentors, to help mentors and mentees understand where their talents are best suited. The Strength Finders assessment provides matches with a list of their top attributes as well as potential careers and more that align with their strengths. This topic is a returning topic from last year's program and is highly requested amongst mentors and mentees who participated.

Resume building and interviewing tips and tricks, which covers the intricacies of crafting the perfect resume to stand out from the crowd when entering the workforce or applying for colleges, scholarships and on-campus employment opportunities. New this year, the program may touch on the topic of AI in the resume-review process, which will continue to affect younger applicants as they enter the workforce. Also new this year would be the addition of interviewing skills, which is a pivotal part of a job search. Experienced interviews may share about what they look for in an applicant, what may disqualify an applicant and do's and don'ts of the interview process. This night would also touch on finding references, notifying references and ensuring that references listed benefit the applicant, and mock interviews may be conducted.

Career exploration and job interviewing, which stands as a revamped version of last year's career exploration night. The new version would invite local businessmen and women who are offering summer job or internship opportunities to conduct interviews with mentees who would like to interview for a position. Mentees would be asked to bring their resume and dress appropriately for the interviews as they would not solely be mock interviews. In the meantime, mentees would be able to talk with hand-selected industry leaders in their expressed future career field to ask questions and learn more about the career prior to pursuing it in the future.

Application Process:

For mentees, an application is required, which includes a parent/guardian permission section that expresses understanding that the mentee will attend meetings once a month for one hour outside of school hours.

For mentors, an application is required, which includes a background check as well as completion of a Child Safety Training that can be completed virtually and will be sent through email following successful completion of the background check.

Mentees and mentors will be matched as well as possible to attempt to align their interests, such as career interests, hobbies and more.

Applications should be completed as soon as possible to aid with planning of topics throughout the year based upon group size and interests.

Applications can be received by contacting Carl Gingerich at 765-431-7166 or cgingerich@coachkids.org. Mentee applications are also available at every high school and may be received from the dedicated COACH Kids school sponsor.