Advising can be a difficult job to handle for even the most experienced advisers let alone newer advisers with less years of experience. Struggling advisers are not alone and MIPA wants to help.
Grand Blanc HS Adviser and Board Member Ava Butzu has been working to promote the MIPA Mentorship Program. The program began in 2004 and since dozens of beginning journalism advisers have been paired with experienced advisers from around the state.
“I think the biggest problem with teaching is that we as educators think that we have to have the answer to everything and we don’t,” Butzu said. “We see everyone else having these great journalism programs or these great experiences and we feel often times like we can’t find it in ourselves to ask questions.”
The mentors are advisers who have been advising anywhere from three years to 30 years and more. Butzu said she tries to pair people up by their outlet, program and/or personalities.
As a mentor, your job would be to answer questions from your mentee in a timely, professional fashion, as well as lending a sympathetic ear when needed. Butzu encourages struggling advisers to seek help. She said the listserv is a good place to start.
“I think the listserv itself is a great mentoring site,” Butzu said. “That is actually one of my favorite things about MIPA is the way that everyone is willing to put questions out there and then you can sort of be a creeper on the listserv and learn so much. I think you can really realize you are not alone.”
For more information about the mentorship program head to website.
