Culturally Congruent Mentoring: Black College Women Supporting Black Girls

Format

Individual Presentation

Format

Individual Presentation

First Presenter's Institution

North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University

First Presenter’s Email Address

kpalexander@ncat.edu

First Presenter's Brief Biography

Kendra P. Alexander, Ph.D, MSW, MPA is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Social Work and Sociology at North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University (NC A&T). She has over thirty years of experience in youth program design, implementation, and evaluation. Her research incorporates community-based participatory methods to examine the post-high school work and educational pathways of Black youth in urban and rural communities. She currently serves as Co-Principal Investigator of the Nia Project (Nia), a Children Youth and Families At-Risk (CYFAR) Sustainable Community Project, funded by the United States Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

Second Presenter's Institution

North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University

Second Presenter’s Email Address

bjmccullough@ncat.edu

Second Presenter's Brief Biography

Brianna McCullough, MSW, BSW is a 2023 graduate of NC A&T’s Bachelor of Social Work program and 2024 graduate of the Joint Master of Social Work (JMSW) program of NC A&T and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She is currently in her first year as a school social worker for Guilford County (North Carolina) Public Schools and supports the Nia Project (Nia), a grant-funded youth initiative, as a project specialist and mentor to participating youth.

Third Presenter's Institution

Appalachian State University

Third Presenter’s Email Address

morgan.cynai@gmail.com

Third Presenter's Brief Biography

Morgan Parker is a sophomore undergraduate student at Appalachian State University where she majors in elementary education and is involved in scholarly endeavors that center Black culture. She served as a co-facilitator of the pilot summer implementation of the Nia Project (Nia) in Martin County (North Carolina) in 2024.

Submitter

I am submitting this proposal as one of the presenter(s)

Location

Verelst

Strand #1

Heart: Social & Emotional Skills

Strand #2

Home: Family & Community Engagement

Relevance

This presentation connects strongly to the "Heart" and "Home" strands. It highlights the importance of fostering social and emotional skills ("Heart") through mentoring relationships grounded in cultural congruence. The program also emphasizes the role of community engagement ("Home") by supporting Black girls in rural areas and addressing the unique challenges they face due to intersectional experiences of marginalization.

Brief Program Description

This session shares insights from Black college women implementing a culturally congruent summer mentoring program for Black middle school girls in a rural community. It explores the value of relationship-building and cultural alignment in addressing the unique needs of mentees.

Summary

Our presentation showcases an innovative summer mentoring initiative that served Black middle school girls in rural communities eastern North Carolina. Recognizing the unique lived experiences of this demographic, we implemented a culturally congruent approach led by Black college women mentors from local communities.

Throughout the summer, mentors engaged in various activities aimed at building strong, supportive relationships with their mentees. These activities were carefully crafted to reflect and celebrate Black culture, fostering a sense of pride and belonging among the participants.

Our presentation will detail the program's structure, implementation process, and preliminary outcomes. We will share insights on the challenges and successes encountered during the pilot phase, as well as strategies for overcoming obstacles specific to rural communities. Additionally, we will discuss the impact of the program on both the mentees and the college student mentors, highlighting the mutual benefits of this culturally responsive approach.

By sharing our experiences, we aim to inspire and guide other educators and community leaders in developing similar programs that address the unique needs of Black girls in rural areas. Our presentation will conclude with recommendations for scaling and adapting this model to different contexts, emphasizing the critical role of cultural congruence in mentoring relationships.

Evidence

The importance of culturally congruent mentoring for Black girls is well-documented in scholarly literature. Rhodes et al. (2017) emphasize that mentoring programs considering cultural factors are more effective in promoting positive youth development among minority populations. Specifically for Black girls, Butler-Barnes et al. (2018) highlight the significance of racial identity and cultural pride in fostering resilience and academic success, particularly in rural settings where resources may be limited. Furthermore, Griffith et al. (2019) demonstrate the importance of racial connection for Black women in college.

Rhodes, J. E., Schwartz, S. E., Willis, M. M., & Wu, M. B. (2017). Validating a mentoring relationship quality scale: Does match strength predict match length? Youth & Society, 49(4), 415-437.

Butler-Barnes, S. T., Leath, S., Williams, A., Byrd, C., Carter, R., & Chavous, T. M. (2018). Promoting resilience among African American girls: Racial identity as a protective factor. Child Development, 89(6), 1995-2013.

Griffith, A. N., Hurd, N. M., & Hussain, S. B. (2019). "I didn't come to school for this": A qualitative examination of experiences with race-related stressors and coping responses among Black students attending a predominantly White institution. Journal of Adolescent Research, 34(2), 115-139.

Learning Objective 1

Participants will understand the importance of cultural congruence in mentoring programs for Black middle school girls in rural communities.

Learning Objective 2

Participants will identify strategies for implementing a successful summer mentoring program that focuses on relationship-building and cultural affirmation.

Learning Objective 3

Participants will recognize the mutual benefits of cross-generational mentoring relationships between Black college women and middle school girls.

Keyword Descriptors

Cultural congruence, Rural mentorship, Black girls, Social-emotional development, cross-age mentoring

Presentation Year

2025

Start Date

3-4-2025 2:45 PM

This document is currently not available here.

Share

COinS
 
Mar 4th, 2:45 PM

Culturally Congruent Mentoring: Black College Women Supporting Black Girls

Verelst

This session shares insights from Black college women implementing a culturally congruent summer mentoring program for Black middle school girls in a rural community. It explores the value of relationship-building and cultural alignment in addressing the unique needs of mentees.