The Civic Mentorship Network is comprised of rural civic leaders who serve as mentors for new women pursuing public service and leadership positions. This network provides a coordinated method for aspiring leaders to make the person-to-person connections that give access to resources that are valuable to enduring success. At 100 Rural Women, we find that success in engaging and mentoring more rural women to serve in public service leadership roles is essential to keeping our democracy strong.
Our goal is to use the Civic Mentorship Network to develop an expansive network that provides personal mentorship to help support busy women as they pursue civic leadership positions. Through this network, 100 Rural Women hopes to help create a future where more women lead.
Our Findings / Participant's Feedback
“Our Findings”
Due to various unforeseen circumstances, not all participants were able to complete an interview. 8 mentors and 7 mentees completed interviews, a total of 15 participants.
Positive Experiences
Majority of women expressed they had a positive experience in the Civic Mentorship Network Pilot Program. Common positive experiences revolved around 100 Rural Women’s communication, the private webpage, the matching process, the accommodations 100 Rural Women was willing to make, and the effectiveness of the program in supporting women with their goals in civic leadership.
Communication
In regards to 100 Rural Women’s communication, 12 participants thought 100 Rural Women communicated very well. The other participants liked our communication but provided us some feedback. This feedback includes 100 Rural Women using other modes of communication other than emails, using bullet points, highlighting important phrases, and using more color.
Private Webpage
100 Rural Women created a private webpage to keep the women in our pilots identities secure. Part of the matching process includes personal information, therefore, 100 Rural Women wanted to ensure anyone outside of the Civic Mentorship Network Pilot was unable to access that information. 11 participants said they liked the private webpage, 2 participants did not use it so they did not have any opinions on it, and the other 2 participants liked the private webpage but had some suggestions to improve it. One major suggestion was to make the webpage feel more secure.
“It was helpful in navigating expectations and making the connections.”
– Mentor
The Matching Process
Almost all the women (14) enjoyed the matching process with no suggestions for change. One women suggested 100 Rural Women should do the matching without participant input. We matched this women with someone she did not initial think she would pair well with, however, after meeting with her newly match mentor she considered it a perfect match. 12 women felt as though they were matched accurately; 2 women felt like they were mostly matched accurately; and 1 woman did not answer.
“Your matching process was spot on.”
– Mentee
Accommodations
Overall, women felt 100 Rural Women was accommodating to the pilot women’s busy lives and schedules. 11 women felt that we were very accommodating and did not have any suggestions. 4 women felt we were accommodating but had some positive suggestions. Some women’s schedule just did not match up with 100 Rural Women’s schedules and others felt the summers were too busy of a time to host a pilot.
“We felt you were very accommodating and we appreciate your flexibility!”
– Mentee
Effectiveness
In regards to the effectiveness of the program helping participants achieve there goals, 100 Rural Women found that the majority of women found the Civic Mentorship Network Pilot effective. 8 women found the program very effective, 6 women found it effective but had suggestions for improvement. Only one woman did not find it effective because she never got a chance to meet with her mentee. Some suggestions to make the program more effective were for the program to be longer and the goals of the program to be more defined.
“This program was hands-down, the most effective mentorship experience that I have had in [a civic] space”
– Mentee
Improvements
The women we interviewed enjoyed the program but had some suggestions to improve the Civic Mentorship Network. These suggestions include having more participant connection, better defining the program and its goals, extending the timeline, adjusting 100 Rural Women “open hours,” and adjusting the biweekly topics.
More Participant Connection
Multiple women informed 100 Rural Women that they would have been interested in networking and connecting with other mentors and mentees part of the Civic Mentorship Network. They saw this as an opportunity to participate in a cohort format.
Defining the Civic Mentorship Network and its Goals
After interviewing the women part of the Civic Mentorship Network Pilot, it was apparent that 100 Rural Women could have been more clear about our programming and direct about goals of the Civic mentorship Network Pilot.
Timeline
The mentorship pilot had to be compacted into a 6 week program due to participant engagement and collection of their initial data. Many women expressed that the program was too short and they did not have enough time to get everything they wanted out of the Civic Mentorship Network.
“Open Hours”
Our “open hours” were not as successful as we hoped for. Out of the women that completed an interview, 11 of the women did not attend any “open hours.” The women expressed that they were confused about what these were and/or did not have the time to attend. One women suggested 100 Rural Women should include a special civic leader as a speaker to draw attention and interest to these meetings.
“I wonder if there could be an email and its like 1 or 2 questions and you click ‘yes’ or ”no’ or whatever — like a poll.“
– Mentor
Biweekly Topics
The biweekly topics were not used as often as we anticipated. Many women enjoyed having these topics available to break the ice with their mentor/mentee or to help keep the conversation on track. However, some women did not find the topics necessary to drive the conversation or felt these topics did not touch on what they were hoping to get out of the mentorship.
Flexibility
“It does not feel like homework.”
A goal 100 Rural Women had when we were working with these busy women was to be flexible and accommodating. The women in our program felt that we were very flexible. Participants highlighted our quick email responses, reminders, rescheduling opportunities, offering a variety of meeting times, and being understanding/forgiving when scheduling did not work out.
Unique Programs
“This is beautifully unique.”
A common theme that came about was that women felt like the program was unique. Many women have never seen a mentorship program like this before. Participants highlighted our unique matching process such as profiles, “Get to Know You” videos, private webpage, and participant input.
“I just think it’s like one of those really unique gifts that I would wish for everyone to have.”
Women Supporting Each Other
Women felt that an important aspect of the Civic Mentorship Network was the ability to be supported by other women. In rural leadership positions women have expressed how isolating and lonely it can be. Having a mentorship program where rural women get to lift up other rural women can help make these women feel more supported.
“Mentors and mentees both can learn from the process.“
– Mentor
Previous Research That Has Guided the Civic Mentorship Network Pilot
We hosted over 100 meetings across the state of Minnesota as part of our 100 in 100 project where we learned from and listened to women. This resulted in over 3,000 requests for support!
In the spring of 2022, three graduate students at the University of Minnesota Humphrey School worked on a Capstone project “April 2022 – The Barriers, Breakthroughs, and Backbone of Elected Rural Women.” In this project, the graduate students conducted interviews with elected women and learned a plethora of information from these interviews.
The Civic Mentorship Network Survey was sent to our listserv to understand who would be interested and what they would want the Civic Mentorship Network program to look like.
Our Civic Mentorship Network conducted a series of Learn About It meetings. Women were invited to interact with civic, rural leaders as they discuss their paths to leadership and barriers they’ve overcome. These sessions facilitated a group mentorship environment meant to inform and inspire women. All these meetings are recorded and listed below.
“Most women just wanna get things done and they want to do good work. They don’t care about the credit, and I think that’s one of the challenges for women. I was gonna run for [an elected position] and people kept saying ‘everything’s gotta be I…I…I…’ And I don’t think women do ‘I… I… I…’ we do ‘we.’ ‘Together we do this. Together we did that.”
These “Learn About It” sessions helped demystified the path to civic leadership for women and provided information about each office. With the opportunity to interact with current and former civic rural women leaders, as well as watch the recorded videos, women can understand more about what civic leadership entails. These “Learn About It” sessions kick-started the Civic Mentorship Network and created the buzz it needed to gather women to want to participate in the network, specifically the pilot program.
Participants of the Research Pilot
100 Rural Women did outreach to our network of rural women in Minnesota with the goal of gathering 30 women, 15 mentors and 15 mentees, to participate in our research pilot. This included reaching out to women currently or previously served in local offices, university students, and others who follow our organization or other similar organizations. Ultimately, 26 rural Minnesotan women, 13 mentors and 13 mentees, agreed to participate in the Civic Mentorship Network Pilot.
“It’s good to broaden your horizons when you’re looking at growing.“
– Mentee
The Pilot Participants Reside in Rural Minnesota
Key: Green – Mentor | Purple – Mentee
Timeline of the Civic Mentorship Network Pilot 2023
Mentors and mentees confirm their participation, 100 Rural women collect information from them, and we hosted “Get to know you sessions” to create profiles for each participant. These profiles include a 2-3 minute video of each participant describing themselves and their goals for participating in the pilot program.
Participants view others’ profiles and indicate their interest in working with other participants. 100 Rural Women staff consider these interests and began matching mentors and mentees.
These two weeks were dedicated to mentors and mentees introducing themselves to each other and discussing the topic of communication skills in the workplace.
100 Rural Women held an open Zoom hour for mentors/mentees to join and check in about their mentorship (participants were encouraged to attend one “open hour” a month).
100 Rural Women held an open Zoom hour for mentors/mentees to join and check in about their mentorship (participants were encouraged to attend one “open hour” a month).
A mentee had to drop out due to time constraints. We then asked the previous mentor to flip her role and become a mentee. The mentor agreed and we found the newly converted mentee a mentor within the next few days.
100 Rural Women held an open Zoom hour for mentors/mentees to join and check in about their mentorship (participants were encouraged to attend one “open hour” a month).
100 Rural Women held an open Zoom hour for mentors/mentees to join and check in about their mentorship (participants were encouraged to attend one “open hour” a month).
100 Rural Women held an open Zoom hour for mentors/mentees to join and check in about their mentorship (participants were encouraged to attend one “open hour” a month).
100 Rural Women held an open Zoom hour for mentors/mentees to join and check in about their mentorship (participants were encouraged to attend one “open hour” a month).
Participants were required to schedule a one-on-one Zoom interview with a 100 Rural Women staff member or fill out an online form. This interview was used to collect feedback about the pilot program. All participants were de-identified and no answers are linked to anyone specifically (this interview also counted as attending an “open hour”).
Throughout the pilot, teaser videos were released to update participants and non-participants about what we are doing during the Civic Mentorship Network Pilot. This first video was released after matching mentors and mentees together.
The biggest barrier 100 Rural Women faced was time!
Working with women immensely involved in their communities meant schedule conflicts, overwhelming amounts of emails, and conflicting summer vacation plans. As the pilot progressed, 100 Rural Women quickly realized another goal of this pilot was to understand how to best serve and connect busy women without being a burden to their already packed schedules. We had a couple of women drop out of the program due to their busy schedules; thus moving forward, it will be a larger priority to understand how 100 Rural Women can better serve busy women.
“Well… my schedule did not allow me to meet your expectations.”
“You all in that department are doing very well… to lower barriers to participation.”
Throughout the project, 100 Rural women had to pivot a few times
The first pivot made was the “Get to Know You” sessions
100 Rural Women wanted to host one large Zoom meeting where we would do breakout rooms that follow the model of “speed dating” for our pilot participants. The actual sessions: 100 Rural Women held multiple small sessions with 1 to 2 participants where we record a 2-3 minute video of participants and put it on their profile for others to see.
Having multiple smaller sessions allowed for women to sign up for different days and times that worked best for them. This also gave women the opportunity to get to know other participants on their own time by watching videos and looking at others profiles independently. Doing the smaller sessions and recording women’s videos took away the barrier of technology, and gave 100 Rural Women an opportunity to get to know participants more closely. Once we got to know the women on a deeper level it helped us proper match mentors and mentee based on goals and personalities. Fortunately, this pivot was necessary and successful.
The second pivot made was when a couple of our participants had to drop out of the pilot
Due to personal and life matters, we had a couple of women drop out of the pilot program. The first woman dropped out fairly early and we were able to fill her seat quickly. Another woman had to drop out near the end of the pilot program, she was a mentee, and we were unable to fill her position in such a short timeframe. She was unable to do the end of pilot interview.
The last pivot made involved the interviews
Throughout this program 100 Rural Women were serving busy women that are heavily involved in their communities, thus, it is no surprise that we had to reformat the interviews as the pilot came to a close. By the end of August we were only able to host 11 one-on-one interviews over Zoom with out pilot participants. Other women had too busy of s schedule to attend these interviews, therefore, we adjusted the interviews. 100 Rural Women asked the remaining women that could not found time to jump on a Zoom call with us to complete the interview questions via a Google form. This was employed to ensure we received feedback from most of our pilot participants. Employing a Google form allowed women to answer on their own time and not have to worry about finding a time that worked for both them and a 100 Rural Women staff member to be on a Zoom meeting.
“I think women are often our own worst enemies as far as feeling confident about our ability to do the job. We need to be authentic ourselves and let everyone else adjust to that. We just need to be our authentic selves.”
-Mentor
What Next for 100 Rural Women's Civic Mentorship Network
“Let’s build a better network for busy women.”
Now that the pilot is over and we heard from the women that participated, we are going to fully launch the Civic Mentorship Network in 2024. The feedback will guide 100 Rural Women to make adjustments but also continue the things women expressed as being positive about the program. We will use women’s suggestions to best inform the timeline. Parts of the program that will remain the same are the matching process, private webpage, and the flexibility 100 Rural Women will provide. Ultimately we hope to build a network for busy women.
Introducing Goals to the Program
The pilot informed 100 Rural Women that in mentorship there needs to be specific goals women are working towards. Moving forward, 100 Rural Women will be more clear about what the goal of our mentorship program is and helping women meet their individual goals through the program. Our first topic of the month will be a mixture of introductions and goal setting. 100 Rural Women will host the first mentor/mentee meeting and facilitate. Women will be asked to introduce themselves to their mentor/mentee and set a goal for the partnership. Participants will then have the opportunity to understand what their mentor/mentee is looking for in the program. Setting goals will also allow for participants to understand when the mentorship will end or when it needs to continue. However, just because a mentor or mentee sets a goal at the beginning of the Civic Mentorship Network does not mean that goal cannot change or develop into something new. Setting a goal at the beginning is just a way to understand what a mentor/mentee initially wants out of the program.
Change in Biweekly Topics and “Open Hours”
After gathering information from the interviews and women’s feedback throughout the pilot, 100 Rural Women has decided to move forward by changing the suggested biweekly topics to suggested monthly topics. We have also decided to make “open hours” optional. At the end of the month mentors and mentee will be encouraged to check in with 100 Rural Women either by email or hopping on an “open hour” Zoom call.
Communication and Outreach
When fully launching the Civic Mentorship Network, 100 Rural Women will incorporate women’s suggestions about the program in our communications. We will employ additional outreach strategies to ensure we reach women that may not have been reached before.
Build Mentorship Across all Sectors
The point of the Civic Mentorship Network Pilot was to learn different engagement strategies and technology we should employ for the future of the Civic Mentorship Network; however, the pilot was also a way for us to learn how to best build a mentorship network framework that 100 Rural Women can use across all sectors (private, public, nonprofit, civic, healthcare, etc). 100 Rural Women dreams of having a large mentorship network where women have the option to be mentored in what best fits their goals. This pilot was a step towards making a large mentorship program in the future.
100 Rural Women: Civic Mentorship Network Pilot Results Webinar
CIVIC MENTORSHIP PILOT REPORT AND FINDINGS
Check out this story map to see what we learned from this amazing cohort of 26 mentor and mentees!
Julie Rosen
Julie lucas
RITA ALBRECHT
KELLY LAKE
Tarryl Clark and Sheila Kiscaden
Michelle zehnder Fischer
Heidi Heitkamp
Luisa Trapero
