Mentorship Program

 

“Each One Teach One” is the name of our mentorship program. “Each One Teach One” was derived during slavery when  most black people were denied education and the opportunity to read. So when one black person was afforded the opportunity to learn to read, that person then taught another black person.

 

Each One Teach One Details

The mentorship program involves fostering communication and a professional relationship between current Physical Therapists and Physical Therapy Assistants with current physical therapy and physical therapy assistant students. We encourage support and guidance from our Mentors to help the mentees while they are enduring the hard, yet rewarding process that is inevitable in school. We have outlined characteristics of mentors as well as mentees. We also have supportive resources for both parties to foster a meaningful, productive learning experience.

In the future, we also want to provide an opportunity for the students to then mentor people with a mere interest in physical therapy to promote our profession.

Being a Mentor

Reasons you should be a mentor:

  • Hindsight is 20/20. If you have had any regrets or made any mistakes in your journey to become a PT, now is your chance to give back and prevent that feeling for the next generation of PTs.
  • You may learn new practice techniques, learn the newest evidence based practices, and expand your way of thinking.
    You can make a difference in several people lives.

“Mentoring brings us together- across generation, class, and often race- in a manner that forces us to acknowledge our interdependence, to appreciate, in Martin Luther King, Jr.’s words, that ‘we are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied to a single garment of destiny.’ In this way, mentoring enables us to participate in the essential but unfinished drama of reinventing community, while reaffirming that there is an important role for each of us in it.” Marc Freedman

A good mentor needs to be:

Prepared

  • Prepare to discover what your mentee needs to improve. Be creative in learning ways to reach out to your mentee. Write out a plan and create a safe learning environment.

Selfless

  • Conduct yourself in an area of abundance and know that what you put out will return to you. Focus on guiding your mentee to make good decisions in their career.

Genuine

  • Be straightforward and honest. Treat your mentee how you would want to be treated. Listen. Answer to the best of your ability and if that doesn’t suffice then point them in the direction of their answer.

For more information, please read article by Jayson Demers called the 7 Qualities of an Effective Mentor.

Being a Mentee

Everyone could benefit from a mentor. Mentors have the ability to see where we need to improve. Mentors are encouraging  and can stimulate our personal and professional growth. Mentors are also great sounding boards, great advisors, and may provide great connections.

A great mentee needs to be:

Respectful

  • Be on time and return phone calls/emails promptly. Ask for feedback. Don’t get defensive, but communicate how you would like to receive feedback. Be considerate of your mentor’s time. Follow up to show progress.

Prepared

  • Know your goals and objectives and communicate that with your mentor. Take notes as you listen and be open-minded to new ideas.

Appreciative

  • Show genuine appreciation for every encounter that you have with your mentor. You may disagree with your mentor respectfully, but do not become argumentative. Only speak positive or neutral comments about your mentor to others.

How to Get Started

Fill out this survey after you have completed the process to become a member. Mentorship cohorts are formed quarterly. Email communications to initiate the mentorship relationship occurs in January, April, July, and October. 

Please email us at info@nabpt.org if you have any further questions or difficulty with the survey.