We have launched a new mentorship program, pairing skilled, knowledgeable mentors with mentees who can learn from them. 

A few of the main purposes of professional mentoring programs include:

• Developing talent in volunteer leadership and management for Committees and Council.
• Increasing and improving volunteer engagement and retention.
• Creating a culture of communication, knowledge sharing, support and skills building.
• Onboarding new volunteers and giving them a direct point of contact they can call on for support. 

As a volunteer, why should you join the mentorship program?

There are two roles within the program for our volunteers: being a mentor (helping and guiding others) or being a mentee (seeking help and guidance from others). Given the diverse roles an individual might play with the College, volunteers might find themselves both a mentor in one situation and a mentee in another.

Individuals who are being mentored, through interaction with the College and mentors, will:

• Gain new insights and skills.
• Grow a larger more diverse professional network.
• Learn what skills are necessary to advance within the Committee structure and on to the Council.
• Develop a better understanding of health regulation and Ontario’s health care system.

Individuals who are mentoring, through their interaction with the mentees, will:

• Gain new perspectives by interacting with newer or prospective colleagues.
• Add to their existing network.
• Feel like they are giving back to their field, professional and regulatory authority by engaging mentees in their work.
• Improve the skills and knowledge of volunteers within the organization.

How the Program works

Our mentorship program operates on three levels to ensure that there is an opportunity to provide support in a way that is meaningful individually for its volunteers.

1. Intra-Committee Mentorship Program.
2. Committee Mentorship Groups Program.
3. Mentoring Education Program.

Intra-Committee Mentorship Program

As its name suggests, this program offers mentorship within the Committee/Council structure. Each newly elected or appointed Council or Committee member will be invited to sign up for the Intra-Committee Mentorship Program (ICMP) where they will be paired with a mentor within their own Committee. The mentor will be a person to whom the mentee can reach out for advice and support around the work of their committee and how the Committee operates.

Committee Mentorship Groups Program

The Committee Mentorship Groups Program (CMGP) will be a series of Committee Groups that focus on specific functions within the Committee and Council structure. A group can have any number of mentors and mentees if they have a desire to work together to further their collective learning and experience through group engagement. Although not necessarily limited to these, some examples of the groups might include:

• Leadership Group – for Chairs and Vice-Chairs of Council and Committees to hone their skills at chairing meetings.
• Decision Writing Group – for individuals who are currently or wish to be involved in drafting decisions and reasons for any of the committees, including Registration Committee (RC), Discipline Committee (DC), Fitness to Practice Committee (FTPC) and Inquiries, Complaints and Reports Committee (ICRC).
• Regulatory Systems Group – for individuals who wish to learn more about the health regulatory model in Ontario and with the College by exploring and discussing issues, review various legal blogs and articles to see their application to the College.
• Health Systems Group – for individuals who wish to learn more about Ontario and Canada’s health system and how the pieces of the system work together to form a network that supports Canadians and Ontarians.
• Risk-based Regulation Group – for individuals who are interested in understanding the relationship between risk and health regulation, and want to work collectively to develop a model that focuses on risk as a preventative regulatory approach.

Mentoring Education Program.

The Mentoring Education Program (MEP) will work in a direction that is opposite to the CMGP. Rather than grouping any mentors and mentees into a collective group, the MEP will be open to any mentee who wishes to participate in one or more education sessions being offered by the College and delivered by a Mentor. Under this program, Mentors will be invited to provide a 1-2 hour educational program offered virtually by the College on evenings and weekends. Sessions will be recorded and available for later viewing by mentees and any College volunteer at any time.

All mentees will automatically be enrolled in the program and invited to any educational program being offered that may be of interest to them. Session topics might include:

• Policy writing for health regulation.
• The Role of the Council and Key Council Leaders.
• Committee Members, Chairs and meeting processes.
• Meeting facilitation.
• Council and Committee Evaluation Process.
• Risk Management and Risk Mitigation.
• Understanding financial information and reports.
• Exploring the intricacies of the public interest.
• Identifying and managing conflict of interest.
• Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Issues for regulators.

Suggestions for topics of interest are welcomed from any individual would be welcomed, and can recommend potential Mentors who could provide the education, or offer to provide the education.

How to get involved as a mentor or mentee.

To become a part of the Mentorship Program, existing volunteers are invited to Enrol in the Program using this on-line form. Once you complete the form, it will reload on your web browser to allow you to make additional entries. You can enrol as a mentor or mentee for any number of roles you play with the College (except you cannot be a mentor and mentee for the same committee/program).

Once you enrol, we will contact you and others from the Committee and begin matching up mentors to mentees.

How to get involved in Groups

We have created the groups outlined above under the Committee Mentorship Groups Program. To join a group, enroll in your chosen group(s) using this on-line form. Once a group has two or more people in it, we will be in contact with you to start the process of setting up regular working sessions.

How to get involved in the Mentoring Educational Program (MEP)

We have not yet set up any events within the MEP; however, work is underway to do so. Anyone interested in a particular session or even offering a session to volunteer colleagues is invited to send their ideas and information to us at volunteers@collegeofnaturopaths.on.ca.