Title: Mentors Needed

Author:

Section/SPIG: Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs

Issue Date:

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In a recent communication, Georges Benjamin, Executive Director of APHA wrote:

Dear APHA Members:

As you know, one of my top priorities as the new Executive Director is to enhance the American Public Health Association's (APHA) leadership capacity to more effectively address current and emerging threats to the health of our nation, to better meet the needs of our members and to help further establish APHA as public health's "go-to" organization. To help achieve this vision, APHA must strengthen its leadership capacity to evolve with the field of public health. Critical to this process is the development of students, the next generation of public health professionals and APHA leaders.

In 1998, the Public Health Student Caucus, which currently serves all APHA student members, initiated a landmark project, the National Mentoring Program (NMP). Now in its fourth year of operation, this program is ideal for helping to cultivate the leadership skills necessary to prepare students to serve as effective public health professionals and Association leaders in the future. Since the program's inception, the number of students who wish to participate has exponentially increased. Unfortunately, the number of mentors participating in this program has not matched the increasing demand.

Dr. Jay Glasser and I are committed to engaging students in APHA projects and initiatives and believe the NMP is one of the best strategies for realizing this commitment. Therefore, we request the assistance of all APHA members to step forward and serve as a mentor in the NMP. Registering to be a mentor in this exceptional program is an effective and greatly needed means by which you can contribute a valuable service to all APHA student members, strengthen the Association's infrastructure, help further establish APHA's leadership role in providing valuable services to the public health community at large, as well as provide guidance and support to emerging public health leaders and professionals.

Registration is open year round, and can be accessed at <www.phsc.org> or at <www.apha.org/ppp/mentoring>. NMP committee members match registrants continuously throughout the year. Matched participants are notified as soon as an appropriate match is made and are invited to participate in the program for one calendar year.

Dr. Glasser and I would like to thank you in advance for your consideration to serve as a mentor in the NMP and providing a valuable contribution to further strengthen the current and future leadership of the APHA. Please visit the Web sites listed above for more information and to register, or contact the program's co-chairs, Cynthia Summers and Mary Elizabeth O'Neil, at <mentoring1@phsc.org> and <mentoring2@phsc.org> for more information.

Sincerely,
Jay Glasser, President
Georges Benjamin, Executive Director