In its second year of existence, the NRL Mentor Program continues
to provide opportunities for both mentors and mentorees. A number
of successful mentorship teams have been reported through the
program's annual progress review. Those involved in the program
report gaining valuable organizational and career knowledge and
constructive feedback that may not have been possible without
the Mentor Program.
Let's visit several Mentor Program
members. The first is a team established in the Executive Directorate
that brought together mentor Ms. Chrystal Hill of the Radar Division
with mentoree Mr. William Guthrie of the Administrative Services
Branch, Technical Information Division.
Mr. Guthrie joined the program
to expand his professional knowledge with an eye to advancement
and to prepare for a possible career change. "I came to
the program with three goals in mind: to be an administrative
officer, a management analyst, and/or to be qualified for my
supervisor's position upon her retirement," says Mr.
Guthrie.
Ms. Hill met regularly with Mr.
Guthrie during the past year, and established a training plan
for him. As part of the training curriculum, Ms. Hill arranged
for one-to-one discussions with Mr. Joseph Cox, Acting Budget
Officer, and assisted Mr. Guthrie in enrolling in the Defense
Business Operations Fund (DBOF) training course and other NRL
related courses. Mr. Guthrie will attend an administrative officer's
course scheduled for later this year.
According to Ms. Hill, "I
have learned much from the experience of mentoring William. I
have gained insight into the operation of a support code by visiting
his work area and receiving valuable firsthand information on
the differences between the support and research codes.
"Thanks to Chrystal, I was
able to visit other areas of the Lab, to observe the agency's
internal functions and their interactions that directly support
NRL," said Mr. Guthrie. "I, in turn, invited Chrystal
to my workplace and shared a hands-on demonstration of my
responsibilities
that enabled her to make suggestions, that will build on my present
knowledge and assist me in reaching my career goals. Being a
part of the Mentor Program has provided me with opportunities
that I was not aware existed at NRL or were not available to
me outside an established training program. My experience in
the Mentor Program has progressed so well, I will continue in
the program, receiving additional guidance from Chrystal to reach
my career goals," concluded Mr. Guthrie.
Another successful team consists of mentor Ms. Diane Martin of
NRL's Management Information Systems Staff, and Mr. Billy Wright
of the Supply Divisions' Credit Card Branch.
"I introduced Billy to careers that deal with computers,
explaining some of the different ways computers can be utilized
in the workplace. We discussed the differences between personal
computers and terminals for accessing computer systems such as
the MISVAX or LABMIS and the capabilities of each. I feel we
both learned a great deal about interpersonal relations in regard
to the handicapped employee. Billy has shown me a different view
on what the handicapped employee faces in the work environment.
I reciprocated by providing Billy with views from the non-handicapped
side, as we work on possible solutions to some of these issues,"
said Ms. Martin.
According to Mr. Wright, "I
am the current chairperson of the NRL Individuals With Disabilities
(IWD) Committee, and Diane has been most helpful in providing
me with many new ideas and assistance in continuing the proactive
direction of the IWD committee. We are both working on such matters
as developing an IWD Home Page which will explain what the IWD
is and what services are provided. In addition, the Home Page
will contain information and links to information that would
be of interest to the disabled or anyone that deals with the
disabled.
"Through our mentorship,
we are investigating ways to help the disabled at NRL. Every
year 1.8 million people are injured in car accidents. Out of
this number, 780,000 people are physically disabled and are unable
to work for at least five months. Their return to the workforce
is a big test both psychologically and physically. The IWD would
like to be available to help these NRLer's return to work and
again be productive members of the NRL organization."
Both Ms. Martin and Mr. Wright
report they are pleased with their experience and will continue
in the Mentor Program.
The Optical Sciences Division
(OSD) had the largest number of participants in January 1995,
when 20 mentor/mentoree pairs began the program. According to
Dr. Celia Merzbacher, Mentor Program OSD Coordinator and a mentoree
in the pilot program, "The high participation rate was aided
by the explicit endorsement of our Division Superintendent, Dr.
Thomas Giallorenzi, who spoke at a seminar held to explain the
program to potential mentors and mentorees. The seminar included
video excerpts from Dr. Coffey's speech at the ceremony establishing
the NRL Mentor Program, as well as firsthand accounts from a
mentor and mentoree who participated in the pilot program. The
presentation helped people to understand the 'resources' that
the program has to offer and realize that NRL management is fully
supportive to the highest levels."
Dr. Merzbacher met individually
with mentorees to discuss their goals and backgrounds and also
with potential mentors in order to make appropriate matches.
"This step was critical to
identifying the right mentor for each mentoree and paid off in
overall success of the program", she said.
At the year-end review, Dr. Merzbacher,
Dr. Giallorenzi and program participants met in small groups
for a period of 20 minutes to discuss the program. This review
was quite successful in determining how the program was working
within the division.
According to Dr. Patricia Tatem,
of the Chemistry Division and Mentor Program Co Chairperson,
"The NRL Mentor Program provides an opportunity for participants
to achieve career and personal goals, whatever they may be. The
program is a mechanism for gaining insight into realistic pathways
to reach these goals. The most important part of the program
is good communication between mentors and mentorees. Success
in the program cannot be achieved without this one, very important
ingredient.
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