ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a few tools that individuals and programs can use to track the progress of either a relationship or a program. People who want to serve as mentors, and people who start mentoring programs, are not always interested in evaluating or quantifying their impact. Real People in the Family Empowerment Program that Marquan Jackson runs at Hamilton Crossing in Ypsilanti, Michigan, each family sets goals in the areas of economics, education, and health. Surveys give one a very rough idea of whether or not what one is doing in a mentoring program is effective. Focus groups are often ideal to help one understand the results of a survey, since one can ask follow-up questions to participants to better understand their answers. A 'dosage analysis' looks at how often a student attended or participated in program, and then looks at the effect on an outcome of interest, such as attendance or school grades.
