Mentoring Programs

The need for mentoring programs for principals has occurred due to the high stakes of accountability for improving schools through student achievement. The idea that new leaders should have mentors to guide them through their career development with skills and managing the stress of their occupation has become increasingly accepted (Mertz, 2004). Even veteran leaders can benefit from an opportunity to receive advice, support and role modeling from other colleagues. In these types of relationships, mentors learn from the protégés, while gaining insight into their own practices, by developing a newfound commitment as practitioners in the field of education (Mertz, 2004). Effective leaders are more apt to lead effective schools resulting in higher achievement scores. Therefore, the need for mentoring programs will help new principals face challenges such as, maintaining a successful school culture, while building and fostering relationships with parents, teachers and students. A mentoring program will allow for new principals to network and access resources to assist with
It has become a resourceful component in policy solutions in a wide range of contexts (Colley, 2002). This traditional mentoring model involved the inexperienced worker learning from an experienced master. During the period of the Industrial Age, the process of mentoring focused on the advancement of one’s career within organizational hierarchies (Kerka, 1998). For many professions, the use of mentoring relationships to facilitate and sustain professional development is an age-old tradition (Alsbury & Hackmann, 2006). Currently, mentoring is a key component of the beginning stages of training in public service professions such as teaching, nursing, and career guidance. Mentoring also assist with the development of top executives and business managers (Colley,