MAYOR BILL WHITE, HOUSTON SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT ABELARDO SAAVEDRA JOIN VERIZON WIRELESS TO ANNOUNCE A NEW "VIRTUAL" MENTORSHIP PROGRAM
May 8, 2007 - Mayor Bill White and Houston Independent School District Superintendent Abe Saavedra today announced students from Lee High School will be the first to benefit from a new tech-savvy way of providing guidance and encouragement to students to stay in school and pursue their dreams.
Expectation Graduation, an HISD and City of Houston partnership, is looking for Houstonians to volunteer for the "Virtual" Mentorship program. Some Lee students will receive Blackberries for limited use and will benefit from the guidance and counseling of Houstonians who will communicate via text messaging.
HISD School Superintendent Dr. Abelardo Saavedra said, "If you look at how young people communicate these days it's through text messaging, so what better way to communicate with an at-risk student that you are mentoring than texting? This also allows professionals who may not have the time to visit a school on a regular basis to still volunteer and be there for a student. Virtual mentoring has the potential to help many of our at-risk students and get more people involved as volunteers."
"This is a great way for Houstonians to use their life experience to answer some of the tough questions young people have when they are trying to make their way," said Mayor White. "Texting provides people a way to connect with young people, despite their busy schedules. Texting is becoming one important way we all communicate."
Verizon Wireless, Houston is teaming with Expectation Graduation to provide the Blackberries and networking support that will allow students and their mentors to communicate.
"Verizon Wireless is pleased to be teaming with Expectation Graduation to help keep Houston students in school," said Katherine Greene, Gulf Coast Region president for Verizon Wireless. "We are in the business of providing technologies that keep people in touch and it is very gratifying to be able to use those same technologies to keep students in touch with mentors that can provide them with the support that they need to stay in school."
The important role of face-to-face communication is not lost in this program. Expectation Graduation will provide opportunities for students and mentors to spend time together and develop the trust required to make the student/mentor relationship meaningful.
For more information on how to get involved with the Expectation Graduation: Virtual Mentor program contact Linda Clarke at linda.clark@cityofhouston.net.
