BECOME AN ALLY
Allies: Support for Getting Ahead graduates
In order to support Getting Ahead
graduates in their journey to build resources and create their future story, we
are recruiting people who can become Allies.
The Role of an Ally: Definitions and Expectations
Allies serve an important role in
helping to create a “bridge” for people who have attended the Getting Ahead
workshops and are building resources to improve their lives. In order to
support Getting Ahead volunteers, "Allies," are
matched with a graduate who is ready to get out of poverty. The
Allies provide coaching, networking and support to help families achieve their self-sufficiency
goals. The premise of Bridges Out of Poverty is that people in poverty are
problem-solvers. Therefore, the role of an Ally is not to solve or fix
problems for graduates, but rather to support the graduates in determining
strategies for helping themselves and to build relationships of mutual respect.
The role of an Ally is to listen, support the goals set by the graduate, build relationships, provide networking and social capital opportunities, and meet regularly with the graduate. Allies should make a 6 month commitment to meet about twice per month with a graduate, and to participate in monthly conference calls with other Allies and the larger Steering Committee.
The Role of an Ally: Definitions and Expectations
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| Graduates from Workshop 1 |
The role of an Ally is to listen, support the goals set by the graduate, build relationships, provide networking and social capital opportunities, and meet regularly with the graduate. Allies should make a 6 month commitment to meet about twice per month with a graduate, and to participate in monthly conference calls with other Allies and the larger Steering Committee.
Getting Ahead graduates have participated in 18 workshop sessions to investigate:
- Their strengths and deficits in terms of 11 resources
- How they spend their time
- Their concrete goals for getting ahead
- Key relationships in their lives and whether they are helping or hurting their growth
Time Commitment for Allies:
- Meet twice per month with Getting Ahead graduates in a public place such as the library
- Participate in a monthly conference call with an Ally Steering Committee to discuss problems, successes, suggestions
- Make a 6 month commitment to serve as an Ally - Relationships take time to build, and it is important to build trust over time
Boundaries and Expectations
The role of the Ally is to support
the graduate. It is NOT to serve as their financial or emotional savior. Boundaries are important to maintain safety,
and to set realistic expectations from the onset. All meetings will be held in
public settings and never in one’s home or in private.
If the Ally or graduate feel they do
not have a good match, they can switch at any time by contacting the Bridges Program Coordinator, Michele Wolff at Mwolff@usj.edu.