January 12, 2024 • 22 mins
When asked, “Who was/is a mentor to you?” We can all probably think of one or more people who have made significant impacts on our lives. Mentors are vital in learning social skills, working through tough situations, and helping you find the right place in your community. Boundless staff members Kelli James and Kiara James join host, Scott Light, to share stories about how mentors have impacted them personally as well as the impressive progress they’ve witnessed in individuals who are receiving mentoring services at Boundless. After all, we are all stronger when we have supportive people in our lives.
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Scott Light (00:03):
Well, a question to our guests as we jump right into
our January episode, who was orstill is a mentor to you, Kelli,
would you start us off?
Kelli James (00:13):
So my original mentor at Boundless was my
supervisor Kirsten Crummel. Shewas a really good influence on
me when I first started, she wasreally great about providing a
lot of training and beingextremely supportive. She was
really great about supportingeverybody's well being and work
(00:35):
life balance. And so she was areally great mentor to provide
additional opportunities for meto grow at Boundless as well.
And I still feel like I can goto her if I have questions.
Scott Light (00:47):
That's awesome.
Kiara How about a mentor foryou?
Kiara James (00:50):
So when I was in college, I went through a
research program and I had amentor that I worked close
under. And we, you know,developed a survey together. But
she outside of the actual work,she helped me through a lot of
personal things and alsopreparing me for the workforce.
You know, before I graduatedfrom college, she taught me a
lot about how to similar toKelli, how to manage work life
(01:13):
balance, and different differentskills I think we're necessary
for employment, and even my ownpersonal things I could use in
my own personal life.
Scott Light (01:22):
We're going to talk more about that. So let's jump
right into it here. Welcome,everyone to how about this
season four of Well-Being apodcast brought to you by
Boundless. Boundless is anonprofit that provides
residential support, autismservices, primary health care,
day programs, counseling, and awhole lot more to children and
adults. Our mission is to builda world that realizes the
(01:43):
boundless potential of allpeople. I'm your host, Scott
light. So you heard our guestsalready. Now let me properly
introduce you to them. KelliJames oversees the Peer Program
here at Boundless and KiaraJames works with individuals
one-on-one and with groups hereas well. Welcome to you both.
Thank you, Kiara, let me comeback to you. And let's talk
(02:03):
about your respective mentors.
Let's let's maybe expound onthat, if you would, the person
that you mentioned, you were incollege, and this person helped
you not only with it sounds likethe your college experience, but
also helped to prep you postcollege. Am I reading that?
Right?
Kiara James (02:20):
Yeah, I mean, originally, I was going to go
directly to grad school aftercollege, but I decided to take
some time off. And then I got myjob here at Boundless, but she
kind of prepared me for, youknow, What do employers look
for, and then how to also workwith people because my degree
focus was in public health andcommunity engagement. So I'm,
(02:43):
you know, working, how to workwith individuals, how to, you
know, figure out what they need,how to have those conversations,
how to have how to think outsidethe box, and kind of pay
attention to things that peopledon't normally pay attention to.
Scott Light (02:55):
Kelli, you mentioned a boss, isn't it great
when you have a boss, asupervisor, who can also be a
mentor,
Kelli James (03:04):
definitely. And she really provided a lot of
opportunities for me to grow atBoundless. And she was just a
very good resource as well,being a licensed independent
social worker, and having a lotof experience in the field. And
I transitioned from anotherfield of being an intervention
specialist. And so I hadexperience working with
(03:26):
individuals with disabilities,but then transitioning into the
role that I am currently in, shejust provided a lot of support,
and really encouraged me likeKiara's mentor to think outside
the box and provided a lot ofsupport for growing the peer
mentoring program as well.
Scott Light (03:47):
Well by now our listeners have probably figured
it out our mentoring focus here.
That's the real crux of ourepisode this month. And we
wanted to begin and I reallyappreciate both of you,
beginning with a personalconnection to your lives when it
comes to a mentor. So now let'sbroaden it out to what's
happening on the campus here atboundless when it comes to
(04:07):
mentoring. So Kelli, let's dolet's start there broadly, what
is Boundless offer when it comesto mentoring programs?
Kelli James (04:16):
Boundless offers our peer mentoring program for
individuals with autism,intellectual and developmental
disabilities, and mental healthchallenges. We serve ages 14 to
40. And it's a wonderful programwhere individuals are matched
with a young adult mentor todevelop and maintain social
(04:36):
skills. This includes thingslike communication skills, such
as entering and exiting groupand individual conversations,
making and keeping positiverelationships both within their
families and outside of theirfamilies and community
integration.
Scott Light (04:51):
So let's break that down just a little bit. And
Kiara, I'll ask you to jump inhere. Maybe for group sessions.
What does that look like in agroup setting when we talk about
mentoring programs here.
Kiara James (05:01):
Yeah, so we have opportunities for in person and
virtual group sessions, it'll bea lot of, you know, working with
the group on teaching socialskills, you know, teaching what
a healthy relationship lookslike with interpersonal
relationships and things likethat. Also, getting them
involved with each other. Soshowing them how to, you know,
(05:22):
these people are your peers,they probably have been through
similar challenges, challengesas you and you know, you guys
are similar age group. Soshowing them that, you know, you
can socialize in theseenvironments, safe space, you
know, having them learn how totell jokes, and it'd be
appropriate or talk aboutpersonal experiences without
(05:44):
sharing too much, you know,those kinds of boundaries within
within social settings, andshowing them you know, what's,
how to have fun, but also learnat the same time.
Scott Light (05:52):
And they're also one on one sessions as well?
Kelli James (05:55):
Yes, so our one on one sessions cover a lot of the
same topics that our groupsessions cover, but also we
tailor those individual sessionsto be specific to the goals that
those individuals and theirfamilies have. So in our
individual sessions, we reallyfocus on community integration,
because we understand that incertain environments,
(06:19):
individuals have learned askill, but we want them to
generalize them in thecommunity, and feel like they
have a place in the community,we don't want them to be
isolated. We want them to go outand experience environments that
people without disabilitiesfrequent, and that they feel
like they have a place in ourcommunity as well.
Kiara James (06:38):
I would hop onto that, and say that a lot of
individuals have more specificgoals. As far as community
integration, like, I want to,you know, volunteer, I want to
go out and figure out my ownplaces and make friends you
know, some individuals want tobe around more people without
disabilities. So they want to,you know, see what that looks
(06:58):
like. But they're not they don'thave the resources at home to do
so. So kind of helping them withthat.
Scott Light (07:03):
I found a quote that I'd like to hit both of
you, I'd like to hear yourthoughts on. And I bet you can
relate it back to the work thatyou're doing here. Steven
Spielberg, famous director, ofcourse, he said this, the
delicate balance of mentoringsomeone is not creating them in
your own image. It's giving themthe opportunity to create
(07:23):
themselves. Kiara is thatespecially poignant for people
with autism and intellectual anddevelopmental disabilities,
Kiara James (07:30):
yeah, I actually really liked that, quote, I
think that individuals should beencouraged to express and be
able to express themselvesindividually, their interests
and their experiences and beable to share that with people,
but also figure out more aboutthemselves, what do they like,
you know, what are their? Whatare their passions? What are
their skills? What skills arethey good at? What skills can
(07:52):
they continue to build, evenemployment, you know, encourage
them to, hey, if you want to geta job, you know, what kind of
things would you do you thinkyou'd be interested in or you
think you'd be good at and kindof exploring that with them. So
kind of just, you know, I can, Ican share my own experiences,
but really focus on you knowthem as a person.
Kelli James (08:12):
I love everything that Kiara said, I completely
agree. For example, one of theindividuals that I've worked
with, had an interest in dogs,and pets. And so working with
them on finding employment andbeing more integrated into a job
(08:33):
that had that passion forworking with animals. So they
found employment at a dogdaycare, and they were provided
those opportunities to be ableto use those special interests
in their employment as well. Andthey really found community in
(08:53):
being around other people whohad those same passions. So we
really gave them thatopportunity to practice those
social skills in a safe place.
And then they could translatethose into their work
environment as well.
Scott Light (09:08):
Well and we've profiled some tremendous artists
here from the Boundless campuswho are out and creating their
own artwork and getting paid forit, right. I mean, we had the
owner of The Awesome Company,which is down in Grove City, and
she employs all kinds of folks.
They're incredible artists. AndKelli, to your point, it's about
(09:31):
finding that fit, right findingthat match,
Kelli James (09:35):
definitely. And another program that we run is
our Girls Night Out program,which we just finished up our
first pilot group, and weactually have our reunion this
week. And so it has been areally moving program that
provides opportunities forteenage girls to be integrated
(09:55):
together, regardless if theyhave a disability or not. And it
has really given themopportunities to go get their
hair done, or go to a fitnessclass, or go and sit at a cafe
with friends and set goals forthemselves. And they were
finding their place in thecommunity, and forming
relationships, and takingselfies together, and hugging
(10:17):
each other, and hanging out witheach other outside of the group.
And that's what the goal of theprogram is, is to have them
build authentic relationships.
And so Girls Night Out is anopportunity for them to really
integrate into the community andfind their specific passions
like Kiara was talking about aswell.
Kiara James (10:39):
There's a few people that I've seen grow so
much since I've started seeingthem, or since they've been
through the program, whetherthey're still in it or not, like
I have a few individuals, onewho which he used to be so
nervous with social settings,you know, he wouldn't be quiet
during group because he wouldparticipate in the peer
mentoring and the group sessionsthat we had, he would be very
(11:00):
quiet, not talk much at all,unless I you know, "Hey, do you
want to answer this question?"you know, prompted him, and even
then he would keep it veryshort. But throughout working
with me one-on-one, and alsoworking in the group, I saw him
blossom, like seeing him,initiate conversation with his
peers, you know, text them onthe weekends, and ask them how
(11:22):
their weekend was going,initiate playing video games
with them online, you know,things like that, that was so
like, such a transformation thatI saw, and I was so proud of
him. I have another individualwho used to be, again, very shy,
very timid, a lot of socialanxiety, and through
participating in group and goingout in the community and things
(11:44):
like that he's able to build,kind of start building healthy
relationships with people. And,you know, hearing even hearing
it from their parents, you know,their parents are like, "Oh, my
gosh, I can't believe that theyare doing this, I've seen so
much of a change, like, thankyou so much for all the work
that you do." And I'm like, youknow, it's not it's yeah, thank
you for the compliment. But it'sreally your child is really,
(12:07):
they're adults, but your childis doing this on their own, like
they're really working hard tomake this change in their life,
Scott Light (12:15):
They're putting in the work, they really are.
That's terrific. It's not acookie cutter approach here can
both of you talk about thetailor made approach that you
take here at Boundless.
Kiara James (12:25):
For me, I'd say, this job has taught me to be so
flexible, so flexible, I've,It's completely different from
something, anything I've everexperienced before. But kind of,
it's learning the patience offiguring out, you know, what
does this person need? What istheir, their disability or their
(12:46):
diagnosis? What does that hinderthem from? Or what has it
historically hindered them fromand how can I help them, you
know, build the skills to beable to still do the things that
they want to do even withdealing with what they deal
with, you know, and some,everyday is not the same. There
are some days when you see them,you know, making a lot of
progress. They can do good forweeks, and weeks and weeks, and
(13:07):
then maybe they might have a badday. And it's just it seems like
regression, but maybe it's notregression, it's just, they just
had a bad day. So just me beingflexible and not, and continuing
to encourage them and continuingto still uplift them and still
give them the resources thatthey need. And still, hey, let's
you know, even if you're havinga bad day, let's go on a walk,
(13:28):
let's go outside and breathesome air and talk, you know, so
that you're not isolated in yourroom, you're not you know,
shutting everybody out, thatkind of thing. That has helped
me a lot. And even building myown skills, outside of, you
know, sessions and likeresearching things, watching
lots of videos reading up onthings like that, too.
Scott Light (13:46):
Sounds like you grow with them.
Kiara James (13:48):
Yeah, a lot.
Kelli James (13:50):
One of the ways that we add personalization to
Girls Night Out is that we havethe girls set their own goals.
Initially, they are givenself-care and social skills
goals that we want them to kindof track and see how they're
initially doing on them. Butthen we want them to develop
(14:10):
their own social skill andself-care goals that they can
then carry out throughout thesessions. But then also, once
Girls Night Out is done, oncethey feel that they've, you
know, been through the session,they have these prerequisite
skills, they developed theseadditional skills, let's get
them to the point where they cancarry those skills over into
(14:34):
their everyday lives. And thatis one of the ways that we
really try to personalize GirlsNight Out. And then whenever
I've worked one-on- one with anindividual I can think of one
specifically where they neededhelp with life skills, and how
can we integrate them into thecommunity to practice these
(14:55):
skills specifically, so Iremember an instance where or
they needed to develop the skillof picking up their medication,
their family really wanted themto be able to independently get
their medication from thepharmacy. And they also wanted
to be able to do that toincrease their own independence.
So one of the ways that we didthat is we role played, what
(15:18):
does it look like going to thepharmacy? What kinds of
questions are they going to askyou? What is appropriate to say
to the pharmacy technician orthe pharmacist while you're
there? So then they went to thepharmacy counter, answered, the
questions went through theinteraction, I listened to how
that interaction went, and thenwe debriefed in a private
(15:38):
setting. And that way, they wereable to have that ownership of
their own social interaction.
And then they were given thatsupport on praising them and
saying, "You did such a greatjob at X, Y, and Z. And what do
you think you could improve onin the next interaction that you
have? Or do you think it wentgreat and perfect, and you just
(15:59):
want to continue to make stridesin the same way?"
Scott Light (16:06):
That's incredible.
And then that gives themconfidence to do maybe a little
bit more next time.
Kelli Jame (16:11):
Exactly, definitely.
Scott Light (16:12):
You guys are talking about just these
impacts, plural. And let's sayit emphatically, these are
unequivocal impacts. I was doingreading and preparing for this
episode looking at papers andarticles, from a lot of
different sources from theDepartment of Labor, Department
(16:32):
of Health to the journal, Natureon the power of mentorship. And
it positively affects everythingfrom from general health to self
esteem to communication skills.
And Kiara, you were talkingabout that, too, even middle and
high school dropout rates. Solet's broaden back out when you
look at just mentorship overall,maybe through the course of what
(16:55):
you're doing here at Boundlessfor that age group, Kelly,
that's a wide swath, 14 to 40years old. How do you look at
just that overall impact?
Kelli James (17:08):
The purpose of having that age range is because
we recognize that there aremultiple transitions through
life, there are individuals whoare 14, and just getting into
high school or 18 andtransitioning out of high
school, there are adults whohave a late diagnosis, and
they're saying, "Wow, this isall making sense, but I could
(17:30):
use that extra support in mylife, to really reach my full
potential." And so we have seensuccess over multiple age
ranges, working on a multitudeof skills. And Kiara has done a
wonderful job working withindividuals who are very young
all the way to, you know, beinginto young adulthood to
(17:53):
adulthood. And so I think shewould be a really great resource
to hear how she hasdifferentiated those skills
across her practice.
Kiara James (18:02):
You know, the individuals who are in high
school, a lot of them maystruggle with social skills in
high school, you know, a lot ofkids are on their phones, 24/7.
So they don't want to talk topeople, they don't want to make
friends. And the friends thatthey do have are people that
they've probably been friendswith their whole lives, so it's
hard to make new friends, youknow. So kind of teaching them,
(18:22):
you know, how to interact inthose social settings, in a
school setting, then theindividuals who are right out of
high school, you know, how dothey find friends? How do they
meet people? How do theysocialize? How do they find
their niche outside of school,because, you know, that's all
they've known so far. And it's achallenge. And then, you know,
individuals who are, you know,approaching 30, or older, you
(18:47):
know, they might be moreisolated in general, because
maybe they don't have a lot offamily members, or they, a lot
of their friends have gone andgot married and had kids and
they and they're not at thatpoint yet where they are ready
for that. So how do I help them,you know, through each different
stage of life? How do I makemyself aware and knowledgeable
(19:08):
of how to, you know, challengethem, help them build these
skills, help them grow intothese people that they want to
be?
Scott Light (19:17):
How can people find out more about what we've talked
about here today?
Kelli James (19:21):
So the best way is to reach out to my email
address, which isKJames@Iamboundless.org. And I
can give them more informationon our peer mentorship program
and discuss the goals that theyhave for their loved one or for
themselves. And it is our goalto match individuals with
(19:44):
mentors who would be the bestfit for them, and they can reach
out to me directly.
Scott Light (19:51):
Well as we start to wrap up our conversation I have
one more quote that I'd like toshare and get both of your
thoughts on this one is fromDenzel Washington who said this,
"Show me a successful individualand I’ll show you someone who
had real positive influences inhis or her life. I don’t care
what you do for a living—if youdo it well I’m sure there was
(20:13):
someone cheering you on orshowing the way. A mentor."
Kiara James (20:19):
First of all, I love Denzel Washington, so it's
great to hear those words fromhim. So I think the the part
where he said someone cheeringyou on, that is a huge part
because praise is so important,you know, that encouragement,
that uplifting. You know,everybody needs that no matter
who you are, to, to make youfeel like you're actually making
progress, that you're actuallyaccomplishing your goals. So I
(20:43):
think mentorship is that, youknow, essentially, that's part
of it, a huge part of it is thatencouragement that someone that
is in your corner, no matterwhat, no matter if anybody,
nobody else is. And thensecondly, I wanted to touch on
the showing you the way, youknow, a mentorship is it's like,
like a kind of like a teacher ina way. You know, it's less
(21:04):
formal, but it's definitely likea teacher, someone who, you
know, shows you, makes you awareof things that you don't know,
shows you information, teachesyou things, you know. So I think
that kind of is a really goodembodiment of like what a mentor
is.
Kelli James (21:18):
I definitely agree with that. Having someone like
Kiara said, in your corner,someone who can really provide
that encouragement to you issuch an impactful aspect of
mentorship. And that's what westrive to do. Of course, we want
them to learn specific skillsand grow as a person but having
(21:39):
that support in their life isalso such an important part of
our Peer Mentorship program, forthem to have that connection
with another person and feellike, "Hey, I have somebody in
my life who really wants tosupport me, regardless of the
skills that I need to work on."And to have that person in my
(22:01):
life who is really here for me.
Scott Light (22:07):
Thank you both for being here. Another great
episode. And you kicked offseason four of the Boundless
podcast this is terrific and toour listeners, we couldn't do
this without all of you. That'sthe reason we're in season four.
So thank you as well. And againto our listeners you can be part
of episodes to come email usyour questions or comments at
(22:28):
podcast@Iamboundless.org. Thisis the Well-being Podcast
brought to you by Boundless.
Well, a question to our guests as we jump right into
our January episode, who was orstill is a mentor to you, Kelli,
would you start us off?
Kelli James (00:13):
So my original mentor at Boundless was my
supervisor Kirsten Crummel. Shewas a really good influence on
me when I first started, she wasreally great about providing a
lot of training and beingextremely supportive. She was
really great about supportingeverybody's well being and work
(00:35):
life balance. And so she was areally great mentor to provide
additional opportunities for meto grow at Boundless as well.
And I still feel like I can goto her if I have questions.
Scott Light (00:47):
That's awesome.
Kiara How about a mentor foryou?
Kiara James (00:50):
So when I was in college, I went through a
research program and I had amentor that I worked close
under. And we, you know,developed a survey together. But
she outside of the actual work,she helped me through a lot of
personal things and alsopreparing me for the workforce.
You know, before I graduatedfrom college, she taught me a
lot about how to similar toKelli, how to manage work life
(01:13):
balance, and different differentskills I think we're necessary
for employment, and even my ownpersonal things I could use in
my own personal life.
Scott Light (01:22):
We're going to talk more about that. So let's jump
right into it here. Welcome,everyone to how about this
season four of Well-Being apodcast brought to you by
Boundless. Boundless is anonprofit that provides
residential support, autismservices, primary health care,
day programs, counseling, and awhole lot more to children and
adults. Our mission is to builda world that realizes the
(01:43):
boundless potential of allpeople. I'm your host, Scott
light. So you heard our guestsalready. Now let me properly
introduce you to them. KelliJames oversees the Peer Program
here at Boundless and KiaraJames works with individuals
one-on-one and with groups hereas well. Welcome to you both.
Thank you, Kiara, let me comeback to you. And let's talk
(02:03):
about your respective mentors.
Let's let's maybe expound onthat, if you would, the person
that you mentioned, you were incollege, and this person helped
you not only with it sounds likethe your college experience, but
also helped to prep you postcollege. Am I reading that?
Right?
Kiara James (02:20):
Yeah, I mean, originally, I was going to go
directly to grad school aftercollege, but I decided to take
some time off. And then I got myjob here at Boundless, but she
kind of prepared me for, youknow, What do employers look
for, and then how to also workwith people because my degree
focus was in public health andcommunity engagement. So I'm,
(02:43):
you know, working, how to workwith individuals, how to, you
know, figure out what they need,how to have those conversations,
how to have how to think outsidethe box, and kind of pay
attention to things that peopledon't normally pay attention to.
Scott Light (02:55):
Kelli, you mentioned a boss, isn't it great
when you have a boss, asupervisor, who can also be a
mentor,
Kelli James (03:04):
definitely. And she really provided a lot of
opportunities for me to grow atBoundless. And she was just a
very good resource as well,being a licensed independent
social worker, and having a lotof experience in the field. And
I transitioned from anotherfield of being an intervention
specialist. And so I hadexperience working with
(03:26):
individuals with disabilities,but then transitioning into the
role that I am currently in, shejust provided a lot of support,
and really encouraged me likeKiara's mentor to think outside
the box and provided a lot ofsupport for growing the peer
mentoring program as well.
Scott Light (03:47):
Well by now our listeners have probably figured
it out our mentoring focus here.
That's the real crux of ourepisode this month. And we
wanted to begin and I reallyappreciate both of you,
beginning with a personalconnection to your lives when it
comes to a mentor. So now let'sbroaden it out to what's
happening on the campus here atboundless when it comes to
(04:07):
mentoring. So Kelli, let's dolet's start there broadly, what
is Boundless offer when it comesto mentoring programs?
Kelli James (04:16):
Boundless offers our peer mentoring program for
individuals with autism,intellectual and developmental
disabilities, and mental healthchallenges. We serve ages 14 to
40. And it's a wonderful programwhere individuals are matched
with a young adult mentor todevelop and maintain social
(04:36):
skills. This includes thingslike communication skills, such
as entering and exiting groupand individual conversations,
making and keeping positiverelationships both within their
families and outside of theirfamilies and community
integration.
Scott Light (04:51):
So let's break that down just a little bit. And
Kiara, I'll ask you to jump inhere. Maybe for group sessions.
What does that look like in agroup setting when we talk about
mentoring programs here.
Kiara James (05:01):
Yeah, so we have opportunities for in person and
virtual group sessions, it'll bea lot of, you know, working with
the group on teaching socialskills, you know, teaching what
a healthy relationship lookslike with interpersonal
relationships and things likethat. Also, getting them
involved with each other. Soshowing them how to, you know,
(05:22):
these people are your peers,they probably have been through
similar challenges, challengesas you and you know, you guys
are similar age group. Soshowing them that, you know, you
can socialize in theseenvironments, safe space, you
know, having them learn how totell jokes, and it'd be
appropriate or talk aboutpersonal experiences without
(05:44):
sharing too much, you know,those kinds of boundaries within
within social settings, andshowing them you know, what's,
how to have fun, but also learnat the same time.
Scott Light (05:52):
And they're also one on one sessions as well?
Kelli James (05:55):
Yes, so our one on one sessions cover a lot of the
same topics that our groupsessions cover, but also we
tailor those individual sessionsto be specific to the goals that
those individuals and theirfamilies have. So in our
individual sessions, we reallyfocus on community integration,
because we understand that incertain environments,
(06:19):
individuals have learned askill, but we want them to
generalize them in thecommunity, and feel like they
have a place in the community,we don't want them to be
isolated. We want them to go outand experience environments that
people without disabilitiesfrequent, and that they feel
like they have a place in ourcommunity as well.
Kiara James (06:38):
I would hop onto that, and say that a lot of
individuals have more specificgoals. As far as community
integration, like, I want to,you know, volunteer, I want to
go out and figure out my ownplaces and make friends you
know, some individuals want tobe around more people without
disabilities. So they want to,you know, see what that looks
(06:58):
like. But they're not they don'thave the resources at home to do
so. So kind of helping them withthat.
Scott Light (07:03):
I found a quote that I'd like to hit both of
you, I'd like to hear yourthoughts on. And I bet you can
relate it back to the work thatyou're doing here. Steven
Spielberg, famous director, ofcourse, he said this, the
delicate balance of mentoringsomeone is not creating them in
your own image. It's giving themthe opportunity to create
(07:23):
themselves. Kiara is thatespecially poignant for people
with autism and intellectual anddevelopmental disabilities,
Kiara James (07:30):
yeah, I actually really liked that, quote, I
think that individuals should beencouraged to express and be
able to express themselvesindividually, their interests
and their experiences and beable to share that with people,
but also figure out more aboutthemselves, what do they like,
you know, what are their? Whatare their passions? What are
their skills? What skills arethey good at? What skills can
(07:52):
they continue to build, evenemployment, you know, encourage
them to, hey, if you want to geta job, you know, what kind of
things would you do you thinkyou'd be interested in or you
think you'd be good at and kindof exploring that with them. So
kind of just, you know, I can, Ican share my own experiences,
but really focus on you knowthem as a person.
Kelli James (08:12):
I love everything that Kiara said, I completely
agree. For example, one of theindividuals that I've worked
with, had an interest in dogs,and pets. And so working with
them on finding employment andbeing more integrated into a job
(08:33):
that had that passion forworking with animals. So they
found employment at a dogdaycare, and they were provided
those opportunities to be ableto use those special interests
in their employment as well. Andthey really found community in
(08:53):
being around other people whohad those same passions. So we
really gave them thatopportunity to practice those
social skills in a safe place.
And then they could translatethose into their work
environment as well.
Scott Light (09:08):
Well and we've profiled some tremendous artists
here from the Boundless campuswho are out and creating their
own artwork and getting paid forit, right. I mean, we had the
owner of The Awesome Company,which is down in Grove City, and
she employs all kinds of folks.
They're incredible artists. AndKelli, to your point, it's about
(09:31):
finding that fit, right findingthat match,
Kelli James (09:35):
definitely. And another program that we run is
our Girls Night Out program,which we just finished up our
first pilot group, and weactually have our reunion this
week. And so it has been areally moving program that
provides opportunities forteenage girls to be integrated
(09:55):
together, regardless if theyhave a disability or not. And it
has really given themopportunities to go get their
hair done, or go to a fitnessclass, or go and sit at a cafe
with friends and set goals forthemselves. And they were
finding their place in thecommunity, and forming
relationships, and takingselfies together, and hugging
(10:17):
each other, and hanging out witheach other outside of the group.
And that's what the goal of theprogram is, is to have them
build authentic relationships.
And so Girls Night Out is anopportunity for them to really
integrate into the community andfind their specific passions
like Kiara was talking about aswell.
Kiara James (10:39):
There's a few people that I've seen grow so
much since I've started seeingthem, or since they've been
through the program, whetherthey're still in it or not, like
I have a few individuals, onewho which he used to be so
nervous with social settings,you know, he wouldn't be quiet
during group because he wouldparticipate in the peer
mentoring and the group sessionsthat we had, he would be very
(11:00):
quiet, not talk much at all,unless I you know, "Hey, do you
want to answer this question?"you know, prompted him, and even
then he would keep it veryshort. But throughout working
with me one-on-one, and alsoworking in the group, I saw him
blossom, like seeing him,initiate conversation with his
peers, you know, text them onthe weekends, and ask them how
(11:22):
their weekend was going,initiate playing video games
with them online, you know,things like that, that was so
like, such a transformation thatI saw, and I was so proud of
him. I have another individualwho used to be, again, very shy,
very timid, a lot of socialanxiety, and through
participating in group and goingout in the community and things
(11:44):
like that he's able to build,kind of start building healthy
relationships with people. And,you know, hearing even hearing
it from their parents, you know,their parents are like, "Oh, my
gosh, I can't believe that theyare doing this, I've seen so
much of a change, like, thankyou so much for all the work
that you do." And I'm like, youknow, it's not it's yeah, thank
you for the compliment. But it'sreally your child is really,
(12:07):
they're adults, but your childis doing this on their own, like
they're really working hard tomake this change in their life,
Scott Light (12:15):
They're putting in the work, they really are.
That's terrific. It's not acookie cutter approach here can
both of you talk about thetailor made approach that you
take here at Boundless.
Kiara James (12:25):
For me, I'd say, this job has taught me to be so
flexible, so flexible, I've,It's completely different from
something, anything I've everexperienced before. But kind of,
it's learning the patience offiguring out, you know, what
does this person need? What istheir, their disability or their
(12:46):
diagnosis? What does that hinderthem from? Or what has it
historically hindered them fromand how can I help them, you
know, build the skills to beable to still do the things that
they want to do even withdealing with what they deal
with, you know, and some,everyday is not the same. There
are some days when you see them,you know, making a lot of
progress. They can do good forweeks, and weeks and weeks, and
(13:07):
then maybe they might have a badday. And it's just it seems like
regression, but maybe it's notregression, it's just, they just
had a bad day. So just me beingflexible and not, and continuing
to encourage them and continuingto still uplift them and still
give them the resources thatthey need. And still, hey, let's
you know, even if you're havinga bad day, let's go on a walk,
(13:28):
let's go outside and breathesome air and talk, you know, so
that you're not isolated in yourroom, you're not you know,
shutting everybody out, thatkind of thing. That has helped
me a lot. And even building myown skills, outside of, you
know, sessions and likeresearching things, watching
lots of videos reading up onthings like that, too.
Scott Light (13:46):
Sounds like you grow with them.
Kiara James (13:48):
Yeah, a lot.
Kelli James (13:50):
One of the ways that we add personalization to
Girls Night Out is that we havethe girls set their own goals.
Initially, they are givenself-care and social skills
goals that we want them to kindof track and see how they're
initially doing on them. Butthen we want them to develop
(14:10):
their own social skill andself-care goals that they can
then carry out throughout thesessions. But then also, once
Girls Night Out is done, oncethey feel that they've, you
know, been through the session,they have these prerequisite
skills, they developed theseadditional skills, let's get
them to the point where they cancarry those skills over into
(14:34):
their everyday lives. And thatis one of the ways that we
really try to personalize GirlsNight Out. And then whenever
I've worked one-on- one with anindividual I can think of one
specifically where they neededhelp with life skills, and how
can we integrate them into thecommunity to practice these
(14:55):
skills specifically, so Iremember an instance where or
they needed to develop the skillof picking up their medication,
their family really wanted themto be able to independently get
their medication from thepharmacy. And they also wanted
to be able to do that toincrease their own independence.
So one of the ways that we didthat is we role played, what
(15:18):
does it look like going to thepharmacy? What kinds of
questions are they going to askyou? What is appropriate to say
to the pharmacy technician orthe pharmacist while you're
there? So then they went to thepharmacy counter, answered, the
questions went through theinteraction, I listened to how
that interaction went, and thenwe debriefed in a private
(15:38):
setting. And that way, they wereable to have that ownership of
their own social interaction.
And then they were given thatsupport on praising them and
saying, "You did such a greatjob at X, Y, and Z. And what do
you think you could improve onin the next interaction that you
have? Or do you think it wentgreat and perfect, and you just
(15:59):
want to continue to make stridesin the same way?"
Scott Light (16:06):
That's incredible.
And then that gives themconfidence to do maybe a little
bit more next time.
Kelli Jame (16:11):
Exactly, definitely.
Scott Light (16:12):
You guys are talking about just these
impacts, plural. And let's sayit emphatically, these are
unequivocal impacts. I was doingreading and preparing for this
episode looking at papers andarticles, from a lot of
different sources from theDepartment of Labor, Department
(16:32):
of Health to the journal, Natureon the power of mentorship. And
it positively affects everythingfrom from general health to self
esteem to communication skills.
And Kiara, you were talkingabout that, too, even middle and
high school dropout rates. Solet's broaden back out when you
look at just mentorship overall,maybe through the course of what
(16:55):
you're doing here at Boundlessfor that age group, Kelly,
that's a wide swath, 14 to 40years old. How do you look at
just that overall impact?
Kelli James (17:08):
The purpose of having that age range is because
we recognize that there aremultiple transitions through
life, there are individuals whoare 14, and just getting into
high school or 18 andtransitioning out of high
school, there are adults whohave a late diagnosis, and
they're saying, "Wow, this isall making sense, but I could
(17:30):
use that extra support in mylife, to really reach my full
potential." And so we have seensuccess over multiple age
ranges, working on a multitudeof skills. And Kiara has done a
wonderful job working withindividuals who are very young
all the way to, you know, beinginto young adulthood to
(17:53):
adulthood. And so I think shewould be a really great resource
to hear how she hasdifferentiated those skills
across her practice.
Kiara James (18:02):
You know, the individuals who are in high
school, a lot of them maystruggle with social skills in
high school, you know, a lot ofkids are on their phones, 24/7.
So they don't want to talk topeople, they don't want to make
friends. And the friends thatthey do have are people that
they've probably been friendswith their whole lives, so it's
hard to make new friends, youknow. So kind of teaching them,
(18:22):
you know, how to interact inthose social settings, in a
school setting, then theindividuals who are right out of
high school, you know, how dothey find friends? How do they
meet people? How do theysocialize? How do they find
their niche outside of school,because, you know, that's all
they've known so far. And it's achallenge. And then, you know,
individuals who are, you know,approaching 30, or older, you
(18:47):
know, they might be moreisolated in general, because
maybe they don't have a lot offamily members, or they, a lot
of their friends have gone andgot married and had kids and
they and they're not at thatpoint yet where they are ready
for that. So how do I help them,you know, through each different
stage of life? How do I makemyself aware and knowledgeable
(19:08):
of how to, you know, challengethem, help them build these
skills, help them grow intothese people that they want to
be?
Scott Light (19:17):
How can people find out more about what we've talked
about here today?
Kelli James (19:21):
So the best way is to reach out to my email
address, which isKJames@Iamboundless.org. And I
can give them more informationon our peer mentorship program
and discuss the goals that theyhave for their loved one or for
themselves. And it is our goalto match individuals with
(19:44):
mentors who would be the bestfit for them, and they can reach
out to me directly.
Scott Light (19:51):
Well as we start to wrap up our conversation I have
one more quote that I'd like toshare and get both of your
thoughts on this one is fromDenzel Washington who said this,
"Show me a successful individualand I’ll show you someone who
had real positive influences inhis or her life. I don’t care
what you do for a living—if youdo it well I’m sure there was
(20:13):
someone cheering you on orshowing the way. A mentor."
Kiara James (20:19):
First of all, I love Denzel Washington, so it's
great to hear those words fromhim. So I think the the part
where he said someone cheeringyou on, that is a huge part
because praise is so important,you know, that encouragement,
that uplifting. You know,everybody needs that no matter
who you are, to, to make youfeel like you're actually making
progress, that you're actuallyaccomplishing your goals. So I
(20:43):
think mentorship is that, youknow, essentially, that's part
of it, a huge part of it is thatencouragement that someone that
is in your corner, no matterwhat, no matter if anybody,
nobody else is. And thensecondly, I wanted to touch on
the showing you the way, youknow, a mentorship is it's like,
like a kind of like a teacher ina way. You know, it's less
(21:04):
formal, but it's definitely likea teacher, someone who, you
know, shows you, makes you awareof things that you don't know,
shows you information, teachesyou things, you know. So I think
that kind of is a really goodembodiment of like what a mentor
is.
Kelli James (21:18):
I definitely agree with that. Having someone like
Kiara said, in your corner,someone who can really provide
that encouragement to you issuch an impactful aspect of
mentorship. And that's what westrive to do. Of course, we want
them to learn specific skillsand grow as a person but having
(21:39):
that support in their life isalso such an important part of
our Peer Mentorship program, forthem to have that connection
with another person and feellike, "Hey, I have somebody in
my life who really wants tosupport me, regardless of the
skills that I need to work on."And to have that person in my
(22:01):
life who is really here for me.
Scott Light (22:07):
Thank you both for being here. Another great
episode. And you kicked offseason four of the Boundless
podcast this is terrific and toour listeners, we couldn't do
this without all of you. That'sthe reason we're in season four.
So thank you as well. And againto our listeners you can be part
of episodes to come email usyour questions or comments at
(22:28):
podcast@Iamboundless.org. Thisis the Well-being Podcast
brought to you by Boundless.
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