Refugee Support Services Youth Mentoring Set-Aside Programs Assessment Guides

Refugee Support Services (RSS) Set-Asides Assessment

Youth Mentoring Mentor Focus Group Guide

Facilitators:
Date:	City, State:

Introduction Script

Thank you for agreeing to join this meeting. I’m [NAME] and this is my colleague [NAME], and we work in the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR). ORR is conducting an assessment of the Refugee Support Services (RSS) Youth Mentoring Set-Aside Program in five states: Georgia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, and Vermont. With this assessment, ORR seeks to understand program implementation and funding, with the goal of using this information to make recommendations for how ORR might improve program design and data collection processes for the Youth Mentoring Program.

We will ask some questions to better understand services provided to refugee youth enrolled in the Youth Mentoring Program. There are no right or wrong answers to any of our questions. Our goal is to gather information that can be used to make changes and improvements to ORR’s programs and services. Please know that your name and other identifying information will not be included in any notes or reports. The reports are for internal planning and programmatic purposes and not for any kind of public dissemination, even if deidentified.

Our meeting will last up to 60 minutes. Please know that your participation in this meeting is voluntary. You may choose to not answer any question and may stop participating in the meeting at any time.

I have one final point to make. We value the time and information you will share with us today and want to make sure we accurately include all the details. With your permission, we will take notes (written and/or on a laptop computer). Those notes will not include your name. During the discussion, if you would like to stop the notetaking while you make a particular comment, please let us know and we will do so. 

Focus Group Questions

1. Introductions

   1. To start, can you each please tell me your first name? [Facilitator note: please only include participants’ initials in the notes.]

2. Recruitment

   1. How did you learn about this opportunity/program?

      1. Why did you want to work as a mentor for YM clients?

2. What was the process to become a mentor like once you were connected with the agency?

   1. Did you receive any training, orientation, or strategies/approaches to use in preparation for working with mentees? If so, what?

   2. How were you matched with your mentee(s)?

3. Program Services and Activities

1. What are/were your mentee’s greatest needs at the start of the program?

   1. What needs did you aim to address with your mentee/mentees?

2. What activities do you participate in with your mentee/mentees?

   1. Do you typically meet with mentees on an individual basis or in a group format?

   2. How do you typically communicate with your mentee/mentees?

2. How were those activities designed/planned? Or, did you plan/tailor those activities yourself or were they planned in consultation with the resettlement agency?

   1. Do you ever form a plan with your mentee/mentees to help tailor services to their goals?

3. What challenges have you experienced in volunteering with the Youth Mentoring Program, if any?

1. How long do you typically mentor a youth/group of youths?

2. Have you received any guidance about when and how to conclude your mentor activities with your mentee?

3. If you have mentored youth under the age of 18, what has been your experience coordinating with caregivers or parents?

4. What are the most significant takeaways or benefits you (and/or your mentee) have gained from this program?

4. Ongoing Needs

   1. Would you participate in this program again or recommend it to others? Why or why not?

2. Are there any adjustments or changes you would suggest for this program?

An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The control number for this project is 0970 – 0531. The control number expires on 9/30/2025.

YM Mentor Interview Questionnaire Page 3 of 3