How I would work this situation . . .

Another Option

Although I’ve chosen to pursue these three mentors, there is a fourth option that I feel could also be beneficial and that is the concept of computer programming. Having worked at Shopify, a leading Canadian tech company, I noticed that many of my colleagues on the programming team were very avid gamers. They had found that their love of gaming could be re-focused on programming languages and software development. If the student showed an interest in that aspect of game development, I would certainly contact a programmer from Shopify or another tech company for them to talk to, but that may be a bit too distant of a correlation to make for a student who hasn’t yet finished high school.

The “Ask”

In order to get in contact with the potential mentors, I have either contacted them directly (some of them I already know,) or gone to their place of business to ask someone face to face whether or not they would be interested in taking part in this kind of program. Most people’s responses have been extremely positive. Many local businesses here pride themselves on being involved with their community and through fostering mentorships like these, they are able to tap into the needs and interests of a creative young mind. Sometimes just that is enough.

 

Ongoing Mentorship

My understanding of the concept behind an ongoing mentorship is that we are encouraging a student and their mentor to carry on their meetings without the coordinator having to be present. From what I understand, this entails facilitating not only the logistics of the meetings, such as transportation, but also passing certain criminal records checks, getting the students’ family and support network on board, and keeping a long-term interest and commitment on the part of the mentor as well.

 

One way to facilitate a lasting mentorship for these particular situations would be to get the student involved in the activities on a long-term basis.

 

Mentor #1: Minotaur

 

Accompany the student to a games night at the store after they’ve met with the mentor there. Let them experience the gaming community first-hand with the coordinator there to facilitate the first time or two. Then possibly discuss the possibility of having them learn one of the games very well so that they could help facilitate the playing of that game at the next games night under the supervision of the Minotaur employee/manager.

 

Mentor #2: Brent Nurse

 

After an initial meeting or two, suggest that the student develop a narrative or a creative concept to workshop through Brent’s mentorship. Brent would simply provide guidance on tools to use and feedback on progress that the student made, but the meetings could be a means to an end, creative projects can take years to develop so this would inevitably have to be a longer-term mentorship.

 

Mentor #3: Barcadia

 

If the student feels comfortable in the environment, maybe ask the mentor if they would be willing to meet with the student once in a while to discuss the organization of special events and group reservations at the location. Possibly the student could become someone that can help instruct groups that are unfamiliar with video games how to play for those special events under the supervision of the staff member from the venue.

 

Since this is hypothetical, some of my ideas may be a little far-fetched, but one important element to me, once all the necessary paperwork and logistics have been managed to facilitate an ongoing mentorship, would be the consolidation of the mentorship as it progresses. I feel it would be important to continue to check in with both the student and the mentor once in a while to be sure that they both feel they are still benefitting from their meetings. If the student has blossomed and has developed a new interest from one mentor, (i.e. they enjoyed meeting at Minotaur and get interested in running their own shop,) it may be worthwhile to revisit their mentorship to see if there are any other community links that could help them to add to their developing understanding of the practical and socially valued positions that stem from their interest (i.e. putting them in touch with someone at KEDCO or another business development agency to know what goes into starting your own store in the community.)