Mentee Application & Program Description

Thank you for your interest in the Social Entrepreneurs of New Orleans Executive Mentoring Program, designed in partnership with the State of Louisiana Lt. Governor's Office of Social Entrepreneurship and Echoing Green, an award-winning nonprofit that provides seed funding to social entrepreneurs. By participating in this program, you are embarking on a rewarding experience to receive invaluable coaching from an executive to accelerate your venture and to build a stronger platform to achieve your vision.

The Opportunity
The Social Entrepreneurs of New Orleans (SENO) Executive Mentoring program links experienced, executive-level professionals from the nonprofit, academic, business, and social entrepreneurship sectors to early-stage social entrepreneurs who have needs in specific areas and are interested in external assistance.

Examples of past projects that mentees have engaged in with mentors include (but are not limited to):

• Executive coaching and management advice surrounding specific challenges.
• Developing a long-term strategic fundraising, business, or media plan.
• Determining a growth plan for a social entrepreneur's organization.
• Helping a social entrepreneur refine their fundraising pitch and review grant proposals, resulting in new funding.
• Exploring an earned-income strategy and making recommendations for new products.
• Developing effective financial management systems.

Criteria for Becoming a Mentee

• Founder, co-founder, or leader of an early-stage social change venture currently in operation (for-profit or nonprofit; less than 4 years in existence or fewer than 3 employees).
• The desire to seek external assistance and mentorship to build a stronger platform to achieve organization's mission
• Ability to commit at minimum 2-3 hours/month for 6 months (approximately 6 meetings with follow-up). Longer-term commitments are possible based on need and availability of mentor.
• Availability to attend program launch and "graduation" event where mentees present program deliverables and successes to a peer audience (dates TBA).
• Responsiveness to SENO program staff.
• The ability to receive feedback and the capacity to implement or act on suggestions and plans that both mentee and mentor have agreed on.
• Strong commitment to realizing the venture and achieving the mission.

Process
Once you complete the online application, the following will take place:

• SENO program staff will review your application.
• If you meet the stated criteria, SENO will inform you of the decision, and we will work on finding a mentor who matches your needs. Applications are due August 12th, 2009.
• We will match you with a mentor, and SENO will then organize an email or phone introduction.
• Shortly after being introduced, you and the fellow will agree to a project, put the agreement in writing, and email a copy of the agreement to Karen Leung at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
• All program mentors and mentees will attend a kick-off launch event for mentors and mentees to meet and set goals.
• SENO will do quick check-ins on the status of the relationship on a monthly/bimonthly basis.
• At the end of the program, mentors and mentees will recovene to present deliverables and progress made on their initial goals.

Apply Here
Please click the above link to apply.

Program Expectations
The expectation is that mentor/mentee matches will meet the needs and preferences of both the mentor and mentee. The foundation of this relationship is setting realistic expectations and allocating adequate time and resources to fulfill your commitments. Since mentors are busy people, it is important that you fulfill your commitments and are fully engaged in the relationship. SENO expects that mentors and mentees meet approximately every month for a six-month period. If a proper match is made, there needs to be a commitment by both the mentor and mentee about being responsive-to each other most importantly, but also to SENO.

SENO asks that you manage the relationship on your own but keep us apprised of your progress on a monthly basis at the least. We will periodically ask that you fill out a short progress report online that provides us with up-to-date information on your match relationship and outcomes. If there are any products that result from your work (a Powerpoint presentation for fundraising purposes, a business plan, etc.), we ask that you or your mentee send a copy to Karen Leung at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . It is important for our tracking and evaluation purposes.

You must both agree on the scope of the project, as well as hours per week and long-term timeframe.
• The discovery/project development/mentoring process comes from the social entrepreneur/mentee going through needs as the mentor listens and assesses his or her own interests and skills. You can decide together if a partnership will make sense.
• If a good match isn't going to come out of your discussion-if you're both not going to be invested in and excited about your partnership-there is no reason to keep going. We will keep you both in mind for future matches. If you need to part ways, there is no harm done.

2008 Program Participants

Mentees:

Kyle Berner, Creator & CEO, Feelgoodz
Angela Daliet, Founder & Executive Director, Save Our Schools New Orleans
Kimberly Dilosa, Founder & Executive Director, Teenzmatter Productions/Youthanasia Foundation
Andreas Hoffman, Founder & Executive Director, Greenlight New Orleans
Liz Lichtman, Co-Founder, R.U.B.A.R.B., Rusted Up Beyond All Recognition Bikes)
Allison Reinhardt & Derrick Tabb, Co-Founders, Roots of Music
Aesha Rasheed, Founder & Executive Director, Parent Organizing Network
Joanna Rosenthal, Founder, KidCamera Project
John Thompson & Tracy Pratt, Founder/Executive Director & Program Director, Resurrection After Exoneration (R.A.E.)
David Schumacher & Ana Monhartova, Co-Founders, A's & Aces
Laura White, Founder, Wild and Water Swimming
Jane Wholey, Founder & Executive Director, Kids Rethink New Orleans Schools)

Executive Mentors:

Lina Alfieri-Stern, Associate Director, Levy-Rosenblum Institute of Entrepreneurship, A.B. Freeman School of Business, Tulane University
Claudia Barker/Barbara MacPhee, Executive Director, New Orleans Outreach & Former Principal, New Orleans Charter for Science and Math High School
Lauren Baum, Director of Marketing, Idea Village
Carol Bebelle, Co-Founder & Executive Director, Ashe Cultural Arts Center
Nicole Blair & Cliff Doescher, Director of Social Enterprise & Executive Director, ARC-GNO
Laura Browning Crochet, Director of Capacity Building, LANO
Miles Bruder, Policy Director, Lt. Governor's Office
Dr. Ye-Sho Chen, Professor of Management Information Systems, E.J. Ourso School of Business, Louisiana State University; Director of Emerging Markets Initiative, LSU
Dr. John Elstrott, Professor of Entrepreneurship, A.B. Freeman School of Business, Tulane University
Dr. Chuanlan Liu , Assistant Professor, Textile Science, Apparel Design, and Merchandising, School of Human Ecology, Louisiana State University
Maya Poree, Regional Manager, National AIDS Fund
Linda Stone, Founder, The Green Project; Green Schools Policy Associate, Global Green
Dr. Linda Usdin, Consultant & Professor, The Ford Foundation, Annie E. Casey Foundation, etc.; Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine
Erin Monroe Wesley, Executive Counsel, Lt. Governor's Office

About Social Entrepreneurs of New Orleans (SENO) // www.seno-nola.org
Social entrepreneurs are solving New Orleans' greatest challenges. SENO's mission is to accelerate the New Orleans recovery and renaissance by building a powerful ecosystem of support for social entrepreneurs. A "social entrepreneur" is someone who has come up with a more efficient or effective solution to tackling a social problem and measures his/her success not in financial profit but in social impact.New Orleans is at the forefront of the social change movement currently underway, and SENO is committed to sustaining this new energy by supporting social entrepreneurs who are committed to making deep social impact.

Questions? Please contact Karen Leung at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or Jewel Constance at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

About the Office of Social Entrepreneurship // www.crt.state.la.us/ltgovernor/socialentrepreneurship
The mission of the Louisiana Office of Social Entrepreneurship is to advance social innovation by supporting the creation and growth of the most innovate, measurable and sustainable solutions to the social problems affecting Louisiana's citizens.

Questions? Please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .