Air Force Mentoring Program, MyVECTOR

Research-based mentoring practices are applicable for all age groups and organizations. Many government and corporate entities have long had mentoring programs, although some have not been widely standardized, modernized, and accessible. The United States Air Force has launched MyVECTOR, a comprehensive, user-friendly mentoring program, which fosters more effective leaders and higher career attainment across its entire corps. We can borrow some ideas from MyVECTOR.

Note: The word vector in math and physics is "a quantity having direction and magnitude [size], especially as determining the position of one point in space relative to another,"according to Google. Most humans need a little help from time to time with direction and building of our lives, don't we?

Article below with photos:

MyVector

"AF launches MyVector, mentorship resources for Airmen"

http://www.af.mil/News/ArticleDisplay/tabid/223/Article/611670/af-launches-myvector-mentorship-resources-for-airmen.aspx

The Air Force recently launched an improved and re-branded Career Path Tool, called MyVector, which encourages mentorship between Airmen at all levels.

The first step in the success of MyVector is for Airmen to volunteer to be mentors and share their experience and expertise with other Airmen.

"Mentoring and networking are two of the most important things for leaders to embrace," said Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James. "Mentoring represents an investment -- one where we may not know the impact until many years later."

The reconfigured online platform supporting mentoring has a modern look and feel. These new configurations support not only the traditional by-name request method of requesting a mentor, but also provide a mentor-matching capability based on weighted characteristics identified by the Airman searching for a mentor.

MyVector has a real-time mentoring plan, discussion forums, a bullet tracker to document accomplishments, and the ability to dialogue online with your mentor. A resource page is also available to assist both parties with mentoring questions and relationships.

"Air Force mentoring fosters a culture of inclusion for all Airmen while maximizing their strengths, and is aligned with the culture of the Air Force for mission accomplishment," said Dr. Patricia McGill, the doctrine, institutional competencies and mentoring chief. "MyVector captures Airmen experiences within and across Air Force specialty codes and occupational series. Mentors will be able to provide feedback on their mentees' career progression."

Mentorship requires time, effort and dedication. To assist with this process, there is a "Mentoring Checklist" in Air Force Manual 36-2643, "Air Force Mentoring Program," which outlines how to plan for the different mentoring sessions.

"No matter your age, it's important to help each other," James said. "Seek a mentor and be a mentor."

For more information and to register for an online profile, please visit: https://afvec.langley.af.mil/myvector

Ret. 2-23-16

Below is from the MyVECTOR website, ret. 3-28-16

"Mentorship is about helping Airmen grow and think for themselves,
and mentees should not be dependent upon their mentors for success."

"Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James is a strong advocate of 

mentorship and encourages Airmen to be proactive about their career development."

"Effective Mentorship 
Facilitates the development of Airmen by
sharing resources, expertise, values, competencies, perspectives, and attitudes."

Air Force Mentoring 

Mentoring is a critical component of the Air Force's Force Development Construct. It is normally a relationship in which a person with greater experience and wisdom guides another person to develop both personally and professionally. Mentoring is not a promotion enhancement program but is designed to prepare Airmen for increased responsibilities. Goals of the mentoring program are to 

• Promote Growth

• Leverage Human Capital 

• Welcome New Employees

Note MyVECTOR's best practices as well as mentor and mentee expectations.

In addition to mentoring, MyVECTOR has career planning, mentoring connections, and knowledge sharing through Discussion Forums and many additional resources, some of which cannot be accessed without logging into the site. 

Two resources those mentoring older youths or adults might read:

• Coaching and Mentoring: How to Develop Top Talent and Achieve Stronger Performance, Harvard Business School Press  

• The Mentoring Advantage: Creating the Next Generation of Leaders, Florence Stone

Thanks to C. Brent Dishman, Attorney at Law, Dishman Military Advocates, for sharing the program with us. www.DishmanMilitaryAdvocates.com

Lip Sync Fundraising

We received an email with a link and a message to view several videos and vote for one to win $6,000. That resulted in a brief internet search on lip sync fundraising. 

First, read this link to Business Insider. http://www.businessinsider.com/how-lip-sync-battle-gets-celebrity-guests-2015-4 

We may add a post just on the above article, but in the meantime, read on.



Excerpt from the email message:

Please take 15 seconds and vote for our video in the LIPSYNC4Charity Event for our chance to win $6,000!

We just were placed in FINALS as one of the TOP 5 CHARITIES with a chance to win this money! Your support would mean so much to us! Thanks so much and please share this with anyone who would be willing to help us out!

Please vote for the BOB MOORE PORSCHE/Audi Video! Look for the group of crazy guys in the red convertible singing their rendition of "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen and we will get the vote! https://a.pgtb.me/r87P1F

 A different charity is featured in each video. In this case, a local auto dealer's different divisions had made a lip sync video. Presumably, the car company, which was getting much fun, positive publicity, was awarding the $6,000 prize, won by the video/charity receiving the most votes. Think of the variations possible!

Screen shots from following the link. Videos are randomly arranged here. You "get" the idea.

Lip Sync Fundraiser Ideas

Putting together a lip sync fundraiser for your school is easy and fun. All you need is a good sound system, an auditorium to use, and people willing to have a good time for a good cause.

A Fun School Fundraiser

The premise is simple – participants mime the vocals of popular music while performing onstage in front of an appreciative audience. The fun comes from seeing just how wild people are willing to be to impress the crowd or win a prize.

The great thing about a lip sync fundraiser is that you don’t actually need any real talent, just a desire to perform. Performers can be students, faculty, staff, parents or local celebrities.

You can divide performers into categories such as grade level, solo performers, groups, rappers, faculty, etc. Offer prizes in every category to encourage as many people as possible to get up on stage and perform. Make sure your prizes encourage creative costumes because the crowd is there to enjoy a show.

Keep everything in the spirit of having fun by providing an emcee to introduce each act with a little comic banter. After each act, the emcee can encourage the audience to applaud their favorite performances.

Fundraising Tips
There are lots of ways to raise funds with this program. You can charge a reasonable admission fee to attend. You can also charge a flat rate fee per performer or group act to take the stage.

Or, you can task performers with raising a certain amount of funds to be able to perform. Just don’t make that number too large or you’ll discourage participation.

You can take photos and shoot video lips of the acts. Depending on the performances, you can sell copies to the performers or they can pay to have them never seen again.

Another way to raise funds is to have the audience fund their votes. You can use numbered raffle tickets to make it simple. Give one ticket with each paid admission and offer extra voting tickets for a modest fee. That way, most students will buy extra tickets to cast additional votes for their favorites.

Additional Ways To Raise Funds
As with any other fundraising event that draws a crowd, you can also do other things to raise funds. An obvious one is selling food and drinks because students will definitely work up a thirst cheering their favorite performers.

You can also offer the usual school spirit items such as t-shirts, sweatshirts, megaphones, and other noise makers at a sales table near the door. Encourage the crowd to make as much noise as possible when cheering on their favorites.

Summary
A lip sync contest is an easy school fundraiser that’s fun for both the audience and the performers. It’s similar to a talent show without actually requiring talent, so even more students can get in on the fun.

It’s a fun way to raise funds for your school while building a strong sense of community. They’re great for those cold winter months when students need a safe outlet for all their energy.

Put one together for your school and have a great time raising funds with your own lip sync fundraiser!

http://www.fundraiserhelp.com/lip-sync-fundraiser.htm   Ret. 3-15-16

Mayor Bartlett's Mentoring to the Max Breakfast 2016, Part II

As mentioned previously, outstanding northeastern Oklahoma mentors, honored at Oklahoma Mentor Day at the State Capitol, were listed on the back of the event program and asked to stand to be recognized at the Mentoring to the Max Mentoring Breakfast with Mayor Dewey F. Bartlett, Jr.

Program back

Mayor Bartlett's Points

• January is National Mentoring Month.
• Tulsa Regional Chamber's Partner in Education Program for over 30 years has driven a highly successful collaboration between business and the schools.
• The City of Tulsa supports mentoring through career awareness, e.g., developing different types of career academies. 

     ~  Aerospace Academy (See previous post.)

     ~  Possible internships with the Tulsa Housing Authority 

         to provide high school students with internships to 

         learn about construction.

   
First Lady Victoria Bartlett's Points

• Emerson Elementary School's partnership with the City of Tulsa

     ~ Lunch buddies

     ~ Reading books to classes

     ~ Educating or engaging students on planning topics

     ~ Her riding with Emerson's Bike Club to City Hall 

• Now several bike organizations have adopted seven Tulsa schools to give children a fun, biking experience.

Mayor Bartlett said about her, "She's the heart behind our community-wide mentoring efforts and is our youth's Number 1 champion."

2015 Coaches' Mentoring Challenge New Mentors for Oklahoma

Beverly Woodrome, director of the Boren Mentoring Initiative, announced the number of new mentors recruited by Oklahoma mentoring programs during the 2015 Coaches' Mentoring Challenge: 3,821. She also thanked Mayor Bartlett and the City of Tulsa for its mentoring efforts and then reminded the audience that he is one of a handful of "Mayors for Mentoring" nationally recognized by MENTOR, the National Mentoring Partnership, for his mentoring advocacy and strategies. Mayors must have a list of mentoring-related accomplishments, initiatives, and pro-mentoring public announcements to be considered for this honor.

http://www.mentoring.org/our-work/campaigns/mayors-for-mentoring/ 

Surprise for the Bartletts!
Seeing Emerson Elementary School's principal Tammy States present with some students was not unusual because of the City's partnership with the school. Woodrome, however, then invited the three students to the podium. These Emerson sixth graders--Aiden and Jacob Joseph and Sylvester Calvin--bore gifts bags!

Aiden and Jacob Joseph and Sylvester Calvin, presenting on 
behalf of grateful Emerson Elementary School mentees, watch the 
Bartletts open their gifts. The Mayor received a "Mentor Tie" 
and the First Lady, a custom-embroidered mentoring apron.

As the event was ending, Mayor Bartlett immediately walked 
stage right in view of all, removed his jacket and tie, and put on the 
mentor tie the Emerson mentees had brought. Leaving early 
for another meeting, he was determined to wear his mentor tie. 
[Don't you just love Mayor Bartlett?] 

Mayor Bartlett with Aiden and Jacob Joseph and Sylvester Calvin

The Joseph twins, Sylvester Calvin stand in front of 

First Lady Bartlett and Mike Neal, chairman of the Tulsa Regional Chamber.

Cell phone photo

First Lady Victoria Bartlett and Pam Listar are listening intently.
Although this is not a sophisticated shot, the details on the apron 
presented to the First Lady are more visible. On the bib is the 
purple and blue Mentoring to the Max logo, and by her left 
hand  embroidered on the pocket in purple lettering
with a red heart image is "I 'heart' Tulsa Mentors."
Cell phone photo

Oklahoma State University's Dr. Jason Kirksey, Vice President 

for Institutional Diversity, who attended the breakfast on behalf 

of the Oklahoma Louis Stokes Minority Participation Alliance 

(OK-LSAMP), enjoyed meeting the Bartletts. 

Emily Harris, mentoring program director, and Treasure Sandeford,
executive director, both of the Boys & Girls Club of Nowata, take a
moment to pose with First Lady Victoria and Mayor Dewey Bartlett. 

Professional event photos provided by Pam Listar, communications director, City of Tulsa

____________________________________________

Notice that Mayor Dewey and First Lady Victoria Bartlett were among those honored on Oklahoma Mentor Day at the State Capitol on January 8, 2016. The certificate of each featured his or her name and read:

"Mentoring to the Max

City of Tulsa

In recognition of making a profound difference in the lives

 of youth through mentoring advocacy and leadership"

David L. Boren, chairman of the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence, 

presents outstanding mentor tokens to Tulsa Mayor Dewey F. Barlett 

and First Lady Victoria Bartlett. Anil Gollahalli, president of the 

Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence, assisted in the presentation.

Photo by Travis Caperton, Capitol photographer 

__________________________________________

About the Mentor Tie

Briefly, the online search for the right mentor tie brought the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence back to Dr. Susan Weinberger, a.k.a. Dr. Mentor, the consultant whom our former director Charlotte Jones had brought in to begin the Boren Mentoring Initiative and help with the Local Education Foundation Outreach. Woodrome, the current BMI director, not only became acquainted through many phone calls and emails but also developed a friendship with and appreciation of Dr. Weinberger on multiple levels.

The money for these classy, fine quality silk mentor ties is actually a donation to the Norwalk Mentor Scholarship, Dollars for Scholars, in Norwalk, Connecticut. 

http://www.mentorconsultinggroup.com/bookstore.html 

We were thrilled to be able to assist these appreciative students in honoring the Mayor and First Lady.

Mayor Bartlett's Mentoring to the Max Breakfast 2016, Part I

For the past few years, we have been honored and excited to attend the Mentoring to the Max Breakfast with Tulsa Mayor Dewey F. Bartlett, Jr. Each year the breakfast's programming differs but always informs the community and promotes mentoring, especially in the Tulsa area. What Tulsa is doing, however, is applicable everywhere.

View toward the stage and podium

This year Mayor and First Lady Bartlett and Kuma Browne Roberts,  program manager for Partners in Education for the Tulsa Regional Chamber as well as co-planner and co-host for the annual event, decided to recognize northeastern Oklahoma mentors who were honored at Oklahoma Mentor Day earlier in January. On the back of the event program was a list of those honorees (See below.). Also, during the event, Mayor Bartlett asked those outstanding mentors to stand. Northeastern Oklahoma representatives from all of the Boren Mentoring Initiative's network were also invited to attend.

Mayor Bartlett listens as First Lady Victoria Bartlett
shares information about Tulsa mentoring.

This blogger's summary from the breakfast:

Explore Downtown Tulsa

The George Kaiser Foundation in Tulsa began the Explore Downtown Tulsa program and Tulsa Community Foundation supports it. Explore Downtown Tulsa is a vehicle to get inner city poor kids to connect with the community and see a vision for the future.
http://www.exploredowntowntulsa.com/

Road Trip for Teachers 

The purpose of this initiative is to get teachers into businesses to see and also learn about skills industries need for the future workforce. 
 https://www.rose.edu/content/news-events/news/2015/07/28/oklahoma-education-and-industry-partnership-draws-the-attention-of-the-governor/. 

Note: Ben Robinson began something similar for Boeing in Oklahoma City and has been expanding the program. Some Oklahoma City teachers involved in this program have also been to NORDAM and other Tulsa companies.

Tulsa Road Trip for Teachers program links: http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/manufacturing/teachers-tour-broken-arrow-manufacturers/article_dac073d4-6ffe-5dec-8803-0072e64ddae3.html?_dc=374245963990.68835

https://storify.com/WylieWorks4You/road-trip-for-teachers-professional-services

Front of program -
Back of program in following post

InterninTulsa

http://www.internintulsa.com/ 

Three aerospace engineers from NORDAM spoke about NORDAM’s long-time, highly successful program. Interns spend 12-weeks at NORDAM to receive a high-quality experience. They are taught presentation skills, take personality and aptitude tests designed for industry, are matched with an engineering mentor, and actually work on a current NORDAM project. Brock Lindsey, the youngest engineer, was himself an intern while in college. When Lindsey graduated, he took his internship certificate, applied for a job, was hired, and has now had seven mentors of his own at NORDAM.

PDF guide about how to start an internship program 

http://ww3.tulsachamber.com/upload/file/intern%20in%20tulsa%20media/2014%20Hire%20Education%20Guide%20Web.pdf 

Virtual Job Shadow 

Rana McVay of Tulsa Public Schools introduced this program. After it was brought to her attention and TPS researched it, TPS bought it. Dee Phillips-Goodnight, an East Central High School teacher, and Landon Wolf, one of her students who has used the program extensively, spoke about it. Using the program has proven so successful, that the Tulsa Partners in Education (Chamber) and TPS are making virtual job shadow videos for the Tulsa area businesses—not associated with the VJS program but based upon its video models. Virtual Job Shadow has interactive activities such as résumés, etc. Surely, a consortium of businesses and/or the foundation could launch a pilot of VJS to evaluate results in OKCPS. Or not. https://www.virtualjobshadow.com/

  First Aerospace Academy

“With the support of Tulsa Tech and Tulsa Public Schools, the first-ever Aerospace Academy in the state launched Aug. 17, 2015 at Tulsa Tech/R.L. Jones Airport. When high school students complete this program, they’ll not only receive a high school diploma and training from the Aerospace Academy, they can attend Tulsa Community College through the Tulsa Achieves program and receive an associate’s degree in a technical discipline, all for free.” http://www.tulsacc.edu/degrees-and-certificates/tulsa-achieves 

Early Childhood Initiative 

Last but not least, the First Lady was approached to spearhead an early childhood program that doesn’t have city, state, or federal money. She has been going into churches and speaking with pastors to begin birth to school-age, i.e., early childhood education, conversations, so that economically challenged children will not enter school with 400-word vocabularies. The average child enters with about a 1500-word vocabulary according to research. 

Follow-up: The church/faith-based early childhood initiative is in the very beginning stages. The First Lady just began visiting with the pastors about this initiative, which is supported by the George Kaiser Family Foundation. The purpose is to engage low-income parents about the importance of interacting with young infants to help with the first formative years of their lives. Educational messages will target low-income families with a three-prong approach: faith-based communities; medical; and the business community.

[Note: Ultimately, this could result in more religious institutions' beginning specific programs for early childhood and families.The potential is enormous.]

These two Tulsa Public School mentees had a very
important part in the program. See the next blog post.

Other cities across the country have taken on this initiative and because Tulsa is already recognized as the best place in America for Early Childhood Education – through its Educare program – Tulsa wants to be recognized as the national leader in this effort to engage babies from birth with verbal communications: talking, singing, reading, playing, etc.

Thanks to Tulsa Regional Chamber and its wildly successful Partners in Education program.




Photos graciously provided by: 
Pam Listar
Communications Officer
City of Tulsa Communications Department