Mentoring with Girls Code Fun

PROJECT INFORMATION

Organizer: Girls Code Fun Foundation & Partner: Google
Project Name: Girls Rule in Python!
Mentoring Session Location: ONLINE (unless you decide otherwise – full flexibility)

Project Duration:

The project lasts 6 months (October 2023 – March 2024, but it’s enough if you’re available for at least 3 months). The project will involve 200 girls (mentees) divided into 20 groups of 10. Each week from October to December, we will teach Python to 2 groups. After a weekend training, they will receive 3 months of mentoring. The more girls you can mentor, the better.

WHO ARE WE LOOKING FOR:

Women who are studying or working in broadly understood new technologies (various programming languages, UX, UI, graphic design, scrum, agile, cybersecurity, IT project management, soft skills, design thinking, and other related fields). IMPORTANT: You don’t need to know Python to become a mentor.

IF YOU:

• Are open, empathetic, patient, communicative, diligent, committed, and willing to share your knowledge and experience
• Are reliable, provide constructive feedback, respect diversity, and can motivate others
• Want to help teenage girls in their development and career path selection and can build relationships during online sessions with at least 2 mentees (3-12 hours of your time)

What is your time commitment for mentoring?

Each mentee is guaranteed sessions with a mentor: 6 check-in calls of a minimum of 15 minutes and a maximum of 1 hour over 3 months after the Python workshops. You mentor at least 2 mentees, so your minimum time commitment is 2 mentees x 6 sessions x 15 minutes = 3 hours. The maximum is 2 mentees x 6 sessions x 1 hour = 12 hours. The duration of the sessions depends on your mentee’s needs. For example, if you can’t participate in mentoring from February, no problem – you will work with a mentee who completes the course in October (her mentoring will be from November to January). If you can start only in December, that’s also fine. We will match you with a mentee who completes the course in November or December, so her mentoring will last for the next 3 months after finishing the course.

We want the mentee to feel they have regular support:

If in a meeting they say there’s nothing new today, that’s okay. You summarize what has happened since the last meeting and schedule the next one. However, for each meeting, you set a topic for discussion, be it an industry article, a TEDx talk, personality tests, a path of written code in some program, a story about what’s happening at your work, or what the mentee is learning in CS – it’s up to you! At the beginning, you set a common goal for the sessions, even the simplest one, and work towards it.

IF YOU:

• If the mentee doesn’t know the session goal, you treat it as a CHALLENGE (i.e., you take the initiative and propose goals and topics for meetings)
• Can independently plan a meeting with the mentee from start to finish, are self-reliant, and just know how to conduct a mentoring session, what materials to use, and know interesting sources of knowledge
• Are your own captain, sailor, and ship, not waiting for instructions but acting, creating the meeting concept and consulting with the mentee, and if the mentee knows what she wants, you follow her lead
• Can encourage development in new technologies, showing examples from life, including your own
• Experience as a mentor is welcome, but we give a chance to EVERY woman who wants to help. So if you don’t have experience, feel free to apply! There must be a first time 🙂 We can help you with that

Then… the role of a mentor in the “Girls Rule in Python” project by GCF & Google is waiting for you!

WHO IS A MENTEE?

A teenage girl aged 15-17 who either: a) Knows she wants to develop in new technologies, or b) Wants to find out if this is the world for her. Every mentee has a unique story, with different needs and attitudes. By joining the project, you understand that you will be working with diverse individuals. IMPORTANT: You build a partnership-mentorship relationship with your mentee, demonstrating that new technologies are for women.

BENEFITS FOR THE MENTEE

• You help her define goals and priorities during sessions and in her development.
• You help her solidify and expand her knowledge.
• You share your story to show what a career in new technologies can look like.
• You create a space tailored to her mentoring needs.
• You help her discover her strengths.
• You allow her to co-lead sessions (speaking less if necessary or taking initiative when needed – you know best as you are a great listener and observer).
• You inspire her with your own example.
• You prepare materials for discussions during sessions to exchange views and broaden horizons.

BENEFITS FOR YOU AS A MENTOR

• By sharing your knowledge and experience, you gain a fresh perspective from the mentee, seeing things from a multi-faceted (younger generation) view.
• You become part of an important and unique educational-development project (Girls Code Fun and Google).
• You invest in your own growth, as mentoring broadens your horizons.
• You have a great opportunity to present yourself as an expert in your field to both the mentee and your professional and business network.
• You receive a certificate.

• The recruitment for mentors in the GCF & Google “Girls Rule in Python!” project lasts until December 17, 2023. If the number of applicants exceeds the requirement, the Organizer will decide on the selection based on the best match for the mentees’ needs and will inform the results via email by December 23, 2023, at 11:59 PM.
• The Organizer does not interfere with the choice of communication channel or method, nor does it set the session dates. Mentors and mentees have full flexibility in setting the rules, goals, and meeting times. The Organizer asks for regular completion of evaluation surveys, feedback on mentee development, and progress reports – in the form of a document to be filled out.

Mentoring: The Best Way to Explore the World

Mentoring, in our opinion, is the best method to explore the world – it offers mutual benefits and broadens horizons! Join as a mentor 🙂