Daughters of the Collective (DOC)

DRAFTTRAINING AND ORIENTATION

GUIDE FOR MENTORS 2010-2011

BLACK GIRLS HOLD UP THE WORLD…

“Become the change you want to see-

those are the words I live by.”

Oprah Winfry

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PAGE

Letter of Welcome to Mentors 2

D.OC Herstory 3

D.O.C Objectives 4 D.O.C Pledge ` 5

Malcolm X Academy Pledge 6

Mentor expectations 7-8

Mentee expectations 9

Creating a presentation/activity 10

Example of presentation/activity 11-13

Adrinka Symbols 14-15

Days we go to M.X.A procedure 16

Days we stay at M.S.U procedure17

How I do I become a driver? 18-19 D.O.C Mentor Log example

20D.O.C Mentee Log example

21

Overview of D.O.C weekend 22Recruiting for D.O.C

23

Code of Conduct24

Administrative Staff25

December 2009,

Dear Daughter of the collective mentor:

Welcome to "Daughters of the Collective," a mentoring collective for at-risk African American girls at Malcolm X Academy in Detroit. You are now a member of a rewarding and exciting organization. This organization is more than a mentoring program, it is a family. The experience you will gain in this program will last a life time.

As a mentor you will meet new people, form new friendships and most of all you will have the opportunity to influence young girls who aspire to be role models just like you.

It is our pleasure to welcome you into a program that will change your life and the life of others. Daughters of the Collective is a sisterhood; it is about helping young sisters find their place in this world. With your help, it is possible. We look forward to working with you all.

Sincerely,

DOC Administrative Staff

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D.O.C Herstory

Daughters of the Collective (DOC) began in the Spring of 2006 as a sister program to the 10-year old My Brother’s Keeper’s Program (MBK) for males attending Malcolm X Academy. DOC is a collective of individuals working with young Black girls in an effort to impact the latter in positive ways. Specifically, DOC seeks to expose young Black females to an array of educational, cultural and artistic opportunities through mentor interactions.

Undergraduate and graduate students at Michigan State University mentor African American girls in 6-8th grades, who are attending MXA academy. Simultaneously, the MSU students receive mentorship from DOC organizers through regular discussions and interactions, including an independent study experience, AL 490. Mentoring, research, and the overall scholarly pursuit of black female experience receive primary focus in the DOC mentoring course for the MSU students. Through various mediums such as film, music, theater, work, poetry ad spoken word, DOC is dedicated to expanding and cultivating the worldviews of young black girls.

While Daughters of the Collective mentors girls from Malcolm X Academy, an African centered educational institution where the majority of the students are African American, DOC does not discriminate on the basis of race, gender, ethnicity, creed, religion or status.

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D.O.C Objectives

To expose young black females in grades 6-8 to an array of educational, cultural and

artistic opportunities through mentor interactions with black female undergraduate

and graduate students.

To promote a sisterhood of black girls and women who share common goals and

experiences.

To build healthy self-concepts, esteem and refinement

To broaden black girl’s worldviews and promote consciousness of the African

Diasporic experience and Womanist/Black Feminist thought.

To maximize and cultivate black girl’s experiences while enrolled at Malcolm X

Academy

To develop a sense of accountability and responsibility to the black female community

To promote the accessibility of higher education and increase awareness of various

career opportunities

To develop leadership training, workshops and interactive learning via various

mediums such as film, music, theater, poetry and spoken word.

To acknowledge our dual role as scholarly researchers and mentors toward a greater

understanding of the black female experience

How many Black females, especially lower income, have grown up without the tutelage of the proverbial ‘village’? This mentoring program is geared to ‘save’ young Black girls by anchoring

them in positive teachings about language, culture, and identity, thus promoting liberatory education and countering negative images of Black females as oftentimes promulgated

through popular culture (Troutman 2006).

D.O.C Pledge

I am a Black girl

Beautiful, strong, loved, powerful and confident

I bring infinite gifts

I am here because of my ancestors

I can accomplish anything

I am bright and witty

I am that deal for real!

I will love and build myself

I will hold down my community

I will sing a Black girls song

I am courageous,

Getting ready to take on this world

I am a Black girl!

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6

MALCOLM X ACADEMY PLEDGE

PLEASE STAND

We, at the Malcolm X Academy, will strive for excellence

In our quest to be the best.

We'll rise above every challenge

with our heads held high.

We'll always keep the faith

when others say die.

March on till victory

is ours: AMANDLA!!!

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Mentor Expectations

As DOC mentors we take our interaction with our mentees at MXA seriously, all mentors are expected to be professional committed and adhere to these

guidelines:

Expected to attend majority of Saturday mentoring sessions.

Interaction with mentees is crucial so please don’t be a wallflower.

Model behavior should be displayed at all times.

Participate in planning and activities for Saturday sessions:

o Each mentor is required to make a presentation at least once a semester.

Mentors should join one of DOC’s planning committees:

o Funding: may require presenting to an organizations or contacting various

organizations.

o Travel: make sure everything is in order for car rentals when they are

needed.

o Food: may require mentor to pick up food and snacks for DOC sessions;

reimbursements are given.

DOC planning meetings will be held on commonly agreed upon days at 6 or

7pm. (Location TBA).

A mentor is required to ride the bus with the girls when they travel to MSU, so we

ask if possible that designated riders sign up for a Saturday. [Varies/semester]

Mentors can be assigned anywhere from one but no more than three mentees

during a semester/school year. Although mentees initially choose who they

would like to be mentored by, mentees may not get their first choice and only

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mentors who are able to attend a majority of the Saturday sessions will be

assigned a mentee.

We encourage mentors and mentees to bond outside of DOC sessions and with

parental permission mentors can spend personal time with their mentees.

PLEASE NOTE: While we do not recommend befriending your mentee on

Facebook, MySpace, or any other social networking sites, we ask that if you do

exercise caution and common sense! This means that you should censor or

block any content deemed inappropriate (ex: Anything you wouldn’t want your

mother or an employer to see).

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Mentee Expectations

DOC Mentees should also take their interactions with mentors and other mentees seriously and they should adhere to these guidelines:

Attend as many sessions as possible.

Be respectful at all times.

Interact with other mentees as well as the mentors.

Learn from the presentations and activities.

Have fun.

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Creating a Presentation/Activity

PLEASE NOTE THAT ANY MATERIALS NEEDED FOR PRESENTAIONS WILL BE PROVIDED BY THE ORGANIZATION UPON YOUR REQUEST IN ADVANCE.

Please use this format when presenting a topic. Chose a creative title that will draw in mentees to your topic of choice. Of course, you may add various things, but try to follow

this format as best as possible.

1. Welcome & Black News ~ Allow time to introduce guests and see how the girls have been since the last time we saw them. Open the floor to discussion of recent Black News in the media, MXA life, personal lives, or college life.

2. Malcolm X Academy Pledge and DOC Pledge ~ Recite both pledges and encourage mentees to memorize the DOC Pledge. Explain to them the importance of the words recited.

3. Today’s Objective ~ Highlight the main point of your presentation. Explain what you want them to take away from your discussion.

4. Adinkra Symbol ~ DOC uses the Adinkra Symbols of West Africa as representations of our organization as a mentor program for Black girls. Please Google “Adinkra Symbols” and find one (or more) that pertains to your topic or main objective. Explain the symbol and why it was chosen. If possible, provide a take-home that uses the symbol so that mentees can always remember and reference that particular symbol.

5. Discussion ~ Present your topic in any format you feel best conveys your objective. This could be through a lecture, power-point, pictures, etc. This will be where you focus on your main points and emphasize the topic you’ve chosen.

6. Activity ~ Create an activity that will engage both mentors and mentees. This should be something fun and exciting for the girls but still focuses on your topic.

7. Discussion ~ End the presentation with a group discussion. This could be as a whole group or small groups. Allow the mentees to express their feelings on the topic and tell what they did or did not like from the presentation. This is the time where we get into the serious talks and allow mentors and mentees to open up to one another.

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Example of Presentation/Activity

Daughters of the Collective Research and Mentoring Program“Who Am I?”

A Presentation by Lamisha RiceSaturday, September 27, 2008

11:00 am-1:00 pm

Welcome

Malcolm X Academy Pledge

D.O.C PLEDGEI am a Black girl,Beautiful, strong, loved, powerful and confident.I bring infinite gifts.I am here because of my ancestors.I can accomplish anything.I am bright and witty.I am that deal, for real!I will love and build myself.I will hold down my community.I will sing a Black girl’s song.I am courageous,Getting ready to take on this world,I am a Black girl!

Black News (Presidential debate; Black Detroit)

Quote of the Day “Courage is the most important of all the virtues, because without courage you can't practice any other virtue consistently. You can

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practice any virtue erratically, but nothing consistently without courage.” 1

~Maya Angelou

Objective for todayTo explore and discuss aspects of ourselves in order to develop a supportive sisterhood and the courage needed to be a Black female in this world.

1

DOC WEEKEND OVERVIEW

Once a school year, DOC invites at least 12 of the girls from MXA with the best

attendance, attitudes and participation in the program to spend the weekend at MSU.

Participants must also be on their best behavior and have a good academic record at

school. DOC weekend usually starts on Friday morning and concludes on Sunday

afternoon. DOC weekend could potentially start on Thursday morning and end on

Saturday afternoon depending on circumstances. The girls may also accompany

mentors to a class at MSU during their visit. This weekend allows the mentees to

experience the college life.

DOC weekend is paid for by the fundraising that has taken place throughout the

school year. It is important for us as DOC mentors to provide an exceptional college

experience to our young black sisters free of cost. Fundraising also helps offset or

eliminate costs for mentor participation during the weekend as well.

We ask that each mentor volunteer during DOC weekend. Mentors are expected

to help with the planning of activities, presentations, and transportation for the

weekend. Mentors are expected chaperone the girls during the weekend when they are

available and stay overnight with them if applicable.

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Activity:

1. Two truths and a liea. Complete information on note cardsb. Volunteers share & all othersc. Discuss shared information

i. PRIVACY MUST BE MAINTAINED

DOC weekend is used to strengthen our connection with our mentees; it also

fosters sisterhood collective responsibility among fellow mentors.

Recruiting for D.O.C

Recruitment for Daughters of the Collective takes place primarily during the first

month of spring and fall semester however interested individuals can fill out an

application at anytime throughout the year. Those who are interested in becoming a

mentor are asked to fill out an application and afterward they are contacted to set up an

interview. Interviews are conducted for one week at times specified on the application.

DOC uses an application process because it is important that we recruit sincere

mentors who are dedicated to the girls we mentor at Malcolm X Academy. Mentors who

are selected to be apart of the program are notified within a week of acceptance and

are given a substantial amount of time but no more than one week to accept or decline

the offer.

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d. Other discussion

Food for thought:

One isn't necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can't be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest. ~Maya Angelou

The fact that the adult American Negro female emerges a formidable character is often met with amazement, distaste and even belligerence. It is seldom accepted as an inevitable outcome of

Code of Conduct

Below are a list of prohibited behaviors and items please read carefully!

PLEASE NOTE: violation of these standards will result in a reprimand and could result in dismissal.

Swearing in front of the mentees or other mentors

Smoking or consuming substances such as alcohol or illicit substances such as

marijuana while attending a DOC session or while spending quality time with

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the struggle won by survivors, and deserves respect if not enthusiastic acceptance. ~Maya Angelou

We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated. ~Maya Angelou

What does this mean for you? (Discuss above thoughts)

2. Get into groups of three to four people with at least one mentor. Discuss issues pertinent to mentees.

What you should know

If you find it in your heart to care for somebody else, you will have succeeded.Watching people that don’t reflect who you are or present an unattainable standard of beauty can make you dissatisfied with who you are and lower your confidence level. (From last Saturday)

A lack of confidence can hold you back from many of life’s advantages. (From last Saturday)Sometimes, I feel discriminated against, but it does not make me angry. It merely astonishes me. How can any deny themselves the pleasure of my company? It's beyond me. ~Zora Neale Hurston

Wrap it up!

What can you do based on the mentoring session today?

Open discussion sisterhood, confidence

Wrap-up exercise: See Adinkra symbols

3. How does the Adinkra symbol relate to the session today?

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Adrinka Symbols of West Africa

When doing a presentation, please choose an adinkra symbol that relates to your topic, and explain. More symbols can

be found at the link below:

http://www.welltempered.net/adinkra/htmls/adinkra_index.htm  Symbol Symbol name Symbol

representationSymbol meaning

your mentee(s) outside of DOC sessions

Dressing inappropriately while attending a DOC session (ex: Low cut or cropped

shirts, short skirts)

Carrying concealed weapons (ex: pocket knifes or blades) while attending a

DOC session

Getting involved in physical or verbal altercations while attending a DOC session

The use of cell phones or text messaging during DOC sessions/activities (If you

need to use your cell phone please step into the hallway

Ladies: Please bear in mind that what you do outside of DOC sessions is your business

but at all times you are a representative of Daughters of the Collective. Your behavior in

and out of DOC sessions reflects on the organization. Strive to be a positive role model

at all times!

Administrative Staff

2010-2011

BOA ME NA

ME MMOA WO

"help me and let me help you"

cooperation, interdependence

 

HYE WONHYE "that which cannot be burnt"

imperishability, endurance

 

ADINKRAHENE "chief of adinkra symbols"

greatness, charisma, leadership

ANANSE

NTONTAN

"spider's web"

 

wisdom, creativity

BI NKA BI "no one should bite the other"

peace, harmony

Dr. Denise TroutmanAdvisor

Troutma1@msu.edu

Jasmine Cross & Ariel RobinsonUndergraduate Coordinators

Tracy Robison & Carleen CareyGraduate Coordinators

AKOFENA "sword of war"

 

courage, valor

EBAN "fence"

 

love, safety, security

MATE MASIE "what I hear, I keep" wisdom, knowledge, prudence

OKODEE

MMOWERE

"talons of the eagle"

 

bravery, strength

ONYANKOPON

ADOM NTI

BIRIBIARA BEYE

YIE

"By God's grace, all will be well"

 

hope, providence, faith

Procedure for days we travel to MXA

On the Monday before the Saturday that DOC mentors depart from MSU they

will reply to an email sent out by the transportation committee asking if they

are attending that session. If they are, they email the committee as to

whether or not they will be riding the van

Mentors meet at the Union at 9 am; the van will depart at 9:15am heading to

MXA. (Mentors may also drive themselves to Detroit if desired or meet the

van at MXA if they are already in Detroit.)

The van arrives at MXA around 11am.

Presentations and activities proceed as scheduled.

Mentors will depart from MXA at 1pm, arriving MSU about 3pm.

No lunch will be served at these sessions but snacks will be dispersed to the

girls.

Procedure for days we mentor at MSU

Mentors meet at Hubbard Hall @ 10:00 am on Saturday.

The girls arrive @ 11am.

A specific mentor or group of mentors will present a specific topic to the girls

accompanied by an interactive activity.

We all have lunch with other planned activities following.

Mentors and mentees also spend personal time with their mentee(s) for an

allocated amount of time.

Mentees and Mentors fill out logs and mentees prepare to depart.

The girls depart at approximately 4 pm.

Mentors and advisors hold a wrap-up session from 4-5pm.

How do I become a driver?

VAN-PICK UP

1. Mentor should get travel authorization from Karylyn Bartz, 220-A Morrill Hall. Her phone number is: 353-9252 and her email is: bartzk@msu.edu Travel authorizations will be ready on Friday, before the Saturday mentoring session.

2. Take the travel authorization along with your valid driver’s license to Transportation Services/Motor Pool (located 134 Central Services Building, off Red Cedar Road, right next to Spartan Stadium, adjacent to Wells Hall). Transportation services will have you sign paperwork and give you keys for the van. DO NOT pick up the van before 4 PM on Friday, but you must pick it up before 5:00 PM Friday, which is when the office closes. There is no Saturday pick up!

3. IMPORTANT: Before you drive van out of the parking lot, be sure to do the following three things; 1) check to make sure that you have the WHITE and GREEN gas card (not MSU credit card) in key pouch. This card is needed for refueling when you return vehicle (SEE BELOW); 2) make sure you have a FULL TANK OF GAS; and 3) inspect the entire vehicle for damage such as dents, missing mirrors or seats, etc. If you notice problems with any of these items, immediately return and report them to the Transportation Services desk. DO NOT accept keys to any vehicle that has problems with the above. Request a new vehicle and call Dr. Troutman, a graduate coordinator, Karylyn Bartz, or other DOC staff (see Administrative Staff information on page 25) if you have problems with the Transportation Services staff.

4. The day of DOC session report to the MSU Student Union, Abbott Road side for mentor pick-up at 9:00 AM. You should depart the MSU Union no later than 9:15 AM in order to arrive on time!

VAN-RETURN

1. Go to the MSU Transportation Services gas station for refill and return.

2. Remove WHITE & GREEN gas card. Make a note of the accurate gas mileage; email that information to Karylyn Bartz.

3. Find gas station computer console (in the middle of the gas station island, between the pumps; it has a green display light and a numbered keypad).

4. Insert the WHITE & GREEN gas card. (Insert and remove quickly). Return the WHITE & GREEN gas card to the key pouch.

5. At prompt, enter gas mileage of the van. Press enter.

6. At prompt, enter your pump number. Press enter

7. At prompt, “Pump Ready or Pump Authorized,” fill gas tank. Note: be sure to fill tank to capacity.

8. Park van in the parking lot located in the back of the Transportation Services office nearest Red Cedar Road, across from Wells Hall.

9. IMPORTANT: Find the key drop-off slot across from gas pumps located on office door on Spartan Stadium (you will see sign labeled “key drop off”). Slide key in drop off slot.

10.Call DOC Graduate Student Coordinator or another DOC driver or mentor if you have any problems.

11.Please direct all questions to Graduate Student Coordinator or other DOC administrative staff.

DOC Mentor Log Example

DOC Mentee Log Example