Palmer Scholars is launching Palmer Connections, a private mentoring and networking platform. Through Palmer Connections, community members will be able to provide micro-mentoring services to young adults in the greater Pierce County community.
Palmer Connections opens access for Pierce County’s leaders who want to be involved in mentoring, but don’t necessarily have the time or capacity to enter into a formal multi-year mentoring relationship. Mentors sign up for the platform using an email or their LinkedIn account, and answer questions about their areas of expertise and the frequency with which they would like to connect with young adults. Areas of expertise include things such as talking about the postsecondary application process, career exploration, tutoring, and professional etiquette. Young people who have matching interests will then use the platform to reach out to mentors.
“Many of our passionate supporters and community members have expressed interested in mentoring, but weren’t in the position to make a long-term commitment," Palmer Scholars Executive Director Jonathan Jackson said. "Now, instead of making a 3+ year commitment, you can pour into as many (or as few) young adults as you like, as frequently as your schedule allows, from anywhere in the world.”
Jackson confirmed that the platform is also meant to serve not just Palmer Scholars but young adults throughout Pierce County as a whole. “While we are staying true to our founders’ mission to serve young adults that are the furthest from opportunity, Palmer Connections enables us take one of the services that is core to our model, mentoring, and make it available to all young people in our community in an innovative way.”
Palmer Connections will additionally serve as a hub for civic engagement and social change. Supported by South Sound Together, Palmer Scholars recently hired a recent alum of the program to spearhead recruitment to the site as well as convene an advisory council of young adults interested in civic engagement. Since the platform has the capability to connect young adults regardless of which school they attend, Palmer Connections will eliminate many of the barriers young people tend to face when seeking opportunities to be involved in their community.
Palmer Connections launched on August 10th and we are looking for mentors to sign up! Palmer Scholars staff would be grateful for the opportunity to give a quick presentation to your business or organization about how its employees/members can get involved in shaping the lives of young people throughout Pierce County.
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