Keeping Mentoring Connections in a Socially Distanced World

Being mentored helps young people, particularly young people at risk, stay healthy and safe. Yet the COVID-19 pandemic challenged traditional strategies for engaging youth and prompted mentoring models to evolve. This report explores how both mentoring programs and mentors adapted to social distancing guidelines during the pandemic. It addresses research questions related to the social-emotional effects of social isolation and virtual learning and explores the benefits and challenges of using virtual mentoring models. The report also offers recommendations aimed at helping mentoring programs better serve youth from a distance.