Assistant Professor Christopher St. Vil and colleague publish, "A Study of a Cross-Age Peer Mentoring Program on Educationally Disconnected Young Adults"

Congratulations to Assistant Professor Christopher St. Vil and his colleague on the publication of their article, "A Study of a Cross-Age Peer Mentoring Program on Educationally Disconnected Young Adults."

St. Vil, C. & Angel, A. (2018). A study of a cross-age peer mentoring program on educationally disconnected young adults. Social Work 63(4), 327-336.

Abstract

A small body of literature has identified cross-age peer mentoring (CAPM) as an effective mentoring model that is reciprocal in nature, affecting the outcomes of both mentees and mentors. To date, however, much of the attention and research focused on CAPM models have been conducted within school settings and few have described programs with an emphasis on disconnected young adults. This current study reports on the findings of a process evaluation that used qualitative methods to examine the impact of a cross-age group peer mentoring program on educationally disengaged young adults serving as mentors. For mentors, benefits of engaging in the CAPM program included (a) giving back, (b) preventing idleness, and (c) creating a sense of community. The results suggest that CAPM has the potential to serve as an intervention model for programs working with disengaged young adults. The article concludes with a discussion on implications for social work practice.