Youth Services

Ramp Mentors

READY TO ACHIEVE MENTORING PROGRAM

A Youth Services Partnership with Windham County Businesses

"I don’t want to be stuck around here doing nothing. I want to actually have something set right now, like a focus for what I’m doing after high school," said one teenage boy during an interview for an in-depth research project conducted by Youth Services with local youth living in difficult circumstances.

Preliminary findings revealed several urgent needs: a need for stable adult role models, peer support groups, activities that help youth envision and plan for their futures, and access to effective supports.

Do you want to be a part of encouraging young people in our community to envision a successful future for themselves? Would you like to expand their horizons as well as their job skills?

RAMP (Ready to Achieve Mentoring Program) is a career-focused program for youth 14 to 17 years old who need extra support. The Institute for Educational Leadership (IEL) is implementing this program at 12 sites across the country and has chosen Youth Services to launch RAMP in Windham County, working with the Vermont Department of Labor.

The goals of increasing career preparation and developing work-readiness skills will be achieved through a combination of one-on-one and group mentoring, training on workplace skills, site visits to businesses and colleges, job shadowing and internships as well as the development of individual career plans.

Youth enrolled in RAMP explore careers in science, technology, engineering and math. This is broadly defined and could include careers in professions such as health care, green/renewable energy, telecommunications and graphic arts, just to name a few. Virtually any company and business professional can be a part of RAMP.

Youth Services’ RAMP program is seeking business partners to:

• Serve as volunteer mentors, guest speakers and team advisors
• Host a work-site visit for RAMP participants
• Provide job shadowing, internships or employment opportunities

"I need somebody to push me to do better because without this I don’t think it’s going to happen," states one 16-year-old. RAMP is an exciting opportunity to invest in our community’s future—our youth.

Contact Kathy Waters, RAMP Director, at (802) 257, 0361, ext. 126, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to discuss your ideas, your contacts and your interest in partnering with us.