icouldbe.org: Be a Career Mentor

icouldbe.org is a 501(c)3 non-profit that steers underserved high school students toward their futures – by linking teens electronically to mentors in a wide range of careers. So whether you are a welder, construction worker, accountant, flight attendant or other professional – icouldbe.org wants you!

Why join icouldbe.org?
It is well known that many highly successful people benefited from the wisdom and guidance of a mentor. That guidance helped them make satisfying career choices. Yet, too few young Americans benefit from such guides and thus cannot envision, and do not plan for, their futures. This lack of support is most evident during the teenage years, when many young people begin to think seriously about a career. Too many American teenagers:

• Can’t Explore. With caseloads ranging from 400 to 1000 students per school, guidance counselors are too overburdened to effectively advise students on their futures.
• Don’t Connect. There are 15,700,000 American youth that need mentors and only 4,000,000 mentors.
• Never Grasp. Students know very little about various professions and unwittingly choose the wrong career path.

icouldbe.org has entered into a partnership with the Teamsters Skills for Tomorrow Project to recruit caring professionals. Please join the icouldbe.org family and help youths from around the country explore and realize their futures and dreams in the Teamsters!

How career e-mentoring works.
As a career e-mentor you’ll spend a minimum of 20 minutes per week communicating with numerous inner city and rural disadvantaged teenagers, who we call “mentees." All mentoring is completely virtual, carried out through a messaging system internal to the icouldbe.org site – meaning you will not receive emails from students at work or home; you’ll just log onto icouldbe.org. Mentees will pose career-related questions, from “what do you like most about your job?” to “why do you work in that field?” to “how could I get a job like yours?” We ask for a commitment of at least one year from our career mentors, who must be enthusiastic about icouldbe.org and helping youths.

How to join.
Please set aside 15-30 minutes to complete the online registration form and training. Then go to icouldbe.org. Click on the box in the middle of page that says, “Mentors: If you would like to become a mentor join here.” We at icouldbe.org eagerly await to work with you and sincerely appreciate your interest in helping kids!

Click here to download the icouldbe.org/Teamster information packet as a PDF file.