Vision4 Girls is a mentorship program designed to support high school girls in achieving their personal and academic goals. The program matches each mentee with a female mentor who can provide guidance, encouragement, and support throughout the school year.

Program History

Vision4 Women Mentorship Program supports high school girls from previously disadvantage schools. The majority of these schools are located in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality Townships and Northern areas. The table and graph below are statistical representation of the girls and schools supported by the program thus far.

Program Objectives

• To help girls develop positive relationships with role models who can provide guidance and support in academic, career, and personal matters.
• To enhance students' self-awareness, self-esteem, and confidence, enabling them to make informed decisions about their future.
• To expose girls to a variety of career and educational opportunities, helping them to explore their interests and plan for their future.
• To help girls develop essential life skills such as communication, problem-solving, and leadership.
• To create a supportive and inclusive community of girls who can support one another as they navigate the challenges of high school and beyond.
• To provide girls with practical guidance and resources to help them succeed academically and in their personal lives.
• To foster meaningful relationships between girls and mentors, promoting both personal and academic growth.

Program Principles

Head Smart...

This principle focuses on developing the intellectual abilities of the mentees. The Head Smart aspect of the program is geared towards expanding the knowledge base of the girls, and helping them build their critical thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making skills. The program helps mentees to improve their academic performance by providing guidance, tutoring, and resources to help them succeed. The girls are encouraged to engage in extracurricular activities, such as reading clubs, science fairs, or coding classes, to develop their curiosity and creativity.

Heart Smart...

The Heart Smart principle emphasises the development of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills. Mentees are guided to develop empathy, self-awareness, and emotional regulation. They are assisted in understand their own feelings and perspectives, as well as those of others. They are also encouraged to practice active listening, effective communication, and conflict resolution skills, and to build positive relationships with peers, family, and other adults.

Hand Smart...

The Hand Smart principle emphasises the development of practical skills that will help the girls succeed in their daily lives. The program encourages them to also lend a hand to others. It facilitates their involvement in community upliftment projects, making them leaders and change agents. Mentees participate in hand and practical skills projects such as sewing, gardening, home skills, car maintenance, driving, job readiness and business skills.

Program Phases

The program is administered in the following phases:

1. Recruitment and selection - Mentors & mentees.
2. Teacher and mentor workshops
3. Life skills camps
4. Mentorship
5. Life skills seminars
6. Awards
7. Post mentorship support

Recruitment, Selection & Induction

Recruitment of Learners...

• Schools from the Nelson Mandela Bay previously disadvantaged areas are recruited.
• Life Orientation teachers (LO) and School principals are consulted to select a minimum of three learners from grades 10 and 12.
• The learner must demonstrate a strong desire to grow and have a willingness to commit to the program for the entire school year.
• The learner must display good academic standing and positive behaviour in school.
• Learners are required to complete and submit application forms with essays narrating their background and personal vision. They are also asked to submit ID’s or birth certificates and final results from previous year. Parents are required to sign the indemnity forms.
• Vision4 Women conducts interviews with each applicant to select girls who meet the criteria for the mentorship program.

Recruitment of Mentors...

• A call for mentors is made on social media platforms and extracted from Vision4 Women database.
• Suitable mentors are professionals, businesswomen, and tertiary students.
• Potential mentors complete an application form, after which interviews are conducted with each mentor.
• Mentors attend training and induction.
• Learners are assigned to mentors.

Program Activities

• One-on-one mentoring sessions – held once a month between mentor & mentee for grade 12.
• Group mentorship sessions – for grades 10 & 11.
• Workshops - on topics such as goal-setting, self-care, and communication skills.
• Fast-forward or Mock graduation where learners dress in academic regalia and “graduate” to their future careers.
• Book clubs.
• Networking opportunities with other program participants and community leaders.
• Community service projects and volunteering opportunities.
• Field trips to university campuses and other educational institutions.
• Mentor and teacher networking sessions.
• Award ceremonies - Celebrations and recognition of program milestones and achievements.

Program Successes

The Success…

• Vision4 women mentorship has had a great impact on the learners, mentors, teachers and parents.
• The girls who passed matric went to different Universities in the Eastern Cape, Western Cape, Free State and Gauteng.
• Throughout the years, the program has enjoyed over 90% pass rate, numerous subject distinctions and 60% bachelor pass.
• We have had girls who achieved top academic awards, such as top student for Motherwell schools combined, and provincial top student from previously disadvantaged schools.
• One of our girls represented South Africa in the Girls 20 Summit in Beijing in 2018.
• The program has produced graduates that are representing in the following professions: accounting, engineering, law, science, medicine, procurement, human resources, pharmacy, IT, education, nursing, economics, politics and journalism, maritime, zoology, and others.
• The managing director of vision4 women was awarded a Herald GM top 5 finalist status for Vision4 Girls mentorship program.
• The program has produced girls who are working in various countries, such as India, UK and Turkey.

The Impact…

The learners who have gone through mentorship attribute their drive and determination to the impact this program has in their lives. There has been:

• Increased academic achievement and graduation rates among program’ participants.
• Improved self-confidence, leadership skills, and self-esteem among girls in the program.
• Positive relationships and connections between mentors and mentees
• Greater awareness of career and educational opportunities among program participants.
• Increased community engagement and volunteering among program participants

Media Coverage…

• The mentorship program has sparked media interest, such as radio, local TV station and newspapers.
• The program was featured many times in The Herald newspaper, the La Femme, the Move magazine, and Zithethele news.
• Vision4 Women were interviewed in Umhlobo Wenene, KQ FM, King Fisher FM and Bay TV.

Partnerships

The program has received support from various local businesses such as:

• Local businessmen and mentors pledge financial support in the awards cost.
• Spar Eastern Cape
• Sovereign Foods
• Borbet SA
• Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality
• Department of Economic Development, Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEDEAT) Special Project Unit.
• Eastern Cape Department of Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture (ESRAC) Special Project Unit.
• Elilox Group (Pty) Ltd
• Transnet
• Aspen Pharmacare
• CCBSA
• Zonwabise Resort Holdings Ltd
• Iliso Consulting (Pty) Ltd
• CCBSA
• Individuals and Vision4 Mentors

The Way Forward

• We would like to extend the program beyond the Nelson Mandela Bay to reach other parts of the Eastern Cape, and nationally.
• We would like to recruit learners from grade 8 in future.
• We would like to increase the intake number.
• We would like to offer more impactful activities to the mentees.