The much buzz-about documentary, Waiting for "Superman", is currently available for viewing in Michigan (more on that in a moment). The film, which highlights challenges in the American public education system, has been lauded as a powerful call-to-action to address the current condition of U.S. public schools.
As a result, viewers are flocking to www.waitingforsuperman.comto discover how they can make a difference. The website admits there is no single solution to fixing our country's education system, but showcases the steps you can take to help ensure every child gets a great education. These steps include: writing your school board, writing your governor or candidates, acting locally, donating resources, becoming informed, joining the debate, volunteering, or MENTORING.
At www.waitingforsuperman.com, individuals can enter their ZIP code to find local mentoring opportunities through MENTOR's Volunteer Referral System of 5,000 mentoring programs, mentoring partnerships, and volunteer centers throughout the country. Subsequently, interested individuals could get connected to programs in Michigan!
MENTOR, and other national partners, believes the film and follow-up dialogue will inform and help people understand that mentoring is one powerful solution to keeping kids in school. They're encouraging state mentoring partnerships and local programs to build awareness about Waiting for "Superman", pledge to see the film, and prepare for the response. For resources on how to do so, click here.
In addition to this effort, MENTOR has partnered with Big Brothers Big Sisters of America and Mentoring USA in the recently-launched Academic Achievement through Mentoring initiative. It aims to link potential mentors with young people in the 2,000 lowest-performing schools in the country. These two activities help spark a national conversation about the children of America's future and the dropout crisis.
How can you help?
There are two major things you can do to support the efforts surrounding Waiting for "Superman" in Michigan. The documentary is currently available for viewing in the Detroit area, Grand Rapids, and Lansing. Visit www.waitingforsuperman.comand click on "Now Playing in Select Theaters" to purchase tickets.
Secondly, MENTOR and Mentoring USA want to gauge the amount of interest and action in mentoring your program may experience as a result of the attention surrounding this film. They're asking for programs to complete an online survey - http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/wfsuperman- to help them establish a baseline measure to determine the impact the film has on increasing the number of people who step forward to be a mentor.
Thank you in advance for your participation in this effort.
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