Letter from our Coordinator
In 2008, the Cobb County School District received one of the largest discretionary federal grants in its history. Since receiving the four-year Safe Schools/Healthy Students (www.sshs.samhsa.gov) grant, the Cobb County School District’s Success for All Students (www.cobbsuccessforall.com) project has provided a wide assortment of student support services through its formal partnerships with the Cobb County Community Services Board, the Cobb County Juvenile Court and the Cobb County Sheriff’s Office.
Throughout the years, Success for All Students services has yielded some very positive outcomes. Despite these great outcomes, during the third year the project’s core management team determined that a critical component missing from the initiative was a district and community-driven student mentoring program. Success for All Students embarked upon creating “Cobb Mentoring Matters” in July 2011. Cobb Mentoring Matters has been built around several core principles. These include developing a sustainable, far-reaching recruitment strategy, providing policy and structure within the school district for mentoring programs to operate, developing a continuum of training and ongoing development for volunteer mentors, and finally creating a platform for local businesses, governments and faith-based organizations to truly engage with students and schools.
In many ways Cobb Mentoring Matters is not just a project, it’s a movement!
It is the hope of Success for All Students that Cobb Mentoring Matters encapsulates the importance of healthy relationships, positive role models and the critical role each and every citizen plays in determining the future success of our youth. I encourage each of you to explore the value of becoming mentor to a child in need.
Their future depends on you. Cobb’s community’s future depends on them.
Warmest regards, Maryellen Gomes - Mentor Coordinator
