Mentor Training: Talking with Your Mentee about Drugs & Alcohol

Wednesday, May 18th
5:30 to 6:30 pm
1111 Garden Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
RSVP to your case manager
by Monday, May 16th

Selena Rockwell is the Coordinator of the Youth Service Specialist (YSS) program at CADA. The YSS work with the youth at the local junior high and high schools to provide them with an all-inclusive support system consisting of confidential counseling, parent and teacher conferences, prevention education, and organizing sober events and activities.

Selena has many years of experience working with teens as both a YSS herself and as a mentor, and will join us for this training to talk with us about how we can approach the topic with our mentees in a non-judgmental, non-confrontational way. We will gain a better understanding of what the pressure is like today, what new drugs are out there, how accessible they are to our youth, and how we can be prepared to discuss them.

If you have questions you would like to submit for Selena ahead of time, please inform your case manager.

Light snacks and refreshments will be available courtesy of the Mentor Program.

April Mentor of the Month

Mark Golden
Mark and his mentee have been a pair since September of 2009. You are likely to see them all around town, but are most likely to run into them at a UCSB Men's soccer game...their favorite sport to watch together.

Mark makes sure to communicate with his mentee's teacher to be on top of assignments and his grades. Together they have improved his grades to almost all A's. Mark is insistent on making sure his mentee completes and understands his homework, especially in math and science, which have always been of interest to his mentee. Mark makes sure that his mentee is aware of the importance of education, both in school, and out in the world. 

He has exposed him to a lot of different activities to keep his mentee's eyes open to the wealth of opportunities available to him if he puts in a little effort.

It has been fun to see Mark's mentoring relationship develop over the past year and a half. Mark's mentee is now excited about school and about the years ahead of him, and we are all looking forward to his future as well.

Thank you, Mark, for all that you do with your mentee! We are all so fortunate to have you as a volunteer with our program!