Visit with the Saint Stephen’s Youth Parent Mentor Program

Friday, we visited the Saint Stephen’s Youth Parent Mentor Program. After weeks of intensive conversations and meetings advocating for its critical funding, it was invaluable to connect directly with the program and reinforce our ongoing push.

Our visit underscored the profound impact of the Parent Mentor Program (PMP), which, since its 2017 inception, has been a cornerstone of strong partnerships within Boston Public Schools. This innovative initiative delivers three essential benefits to our city: it fosters deep family engagement in schools, provides direct support to students, and significantly enhances economic mobility for families by empowering them as educators within our school system. These investments yield tangible career advancements, with nearly 40% of Parent Mentors successfully transitioning into crucial school-based roles, including paraprofessionals, lunch monitors, and bus monitors.

St. Stephen’s Youth Programs further strengthens these career pathways by offering no-cost professional credentials through initiatives such as Urban College’s Lead Teacher program and the Center for Teaching and Licensure’s Paraprofessional prep course. This direct connection with the program reaffirms our commitment to ensuring its continued funding, as its benefits are clearly essential for our schools and our community.