2027 National Mentoring Summit Workshop Proposals 

The National Mentoring Summit

MENTOR’s seventeenth annual National Mentoring Summit will convene individuals representing the mentoring movement, including practitioners, researchers, philanthropic investors, youth leaders, government and civic leaders, and MENTOR Affiliates. The National Mentoring Summit garners support from both the private and public sectors, including a group of national mentoring and youth-serving organizations who serve as supporting partners. This is an annual opportunity for the mentoring movement to advance a collective mentoring agenda, strengthen programs and practices, and collaborate to support positive youth development through mentoring. 

The 2026 National Mentoring Summit hosted nearly 1,000 participants and featured over 80 competitively selected workshops. 

Workshop Information

The 2027 National Mentoring Summit will continue to explore how mentoring relationships are central to a young person’s development and success. Workshops should provide attendees with practical tools and knowledge to bring to their own work. Please be mindful that Summit attendees represent a cross-sector set of stakeholders, noted above. 

Popular Among Attendees: 

• Interactive and experiential learning activities that get attendees moving, talking, or practicing 
• Use of lived experience amongst the presenters, particularly from youth panelists 
• Concrete examples of strategies, applications, and action items 
• Data and data evaluation 
• Workshops that incorporate DEI topics/frameworks into their presentations 
• Templates, worksheets, or other tools 

Workshop presenters are encouraged to focus workshop topics and themes on the following areas: 

• Advocacy and public policy work.
• Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring™, including best practices related to mentor/mentee recruitment, mentor screening, mentor/mentee training, parent and community engagement, matching and match support, and match closure. Includes foundational knowledge and practices for those looking to develop or start a mentoring program.
• Innovations and Adaptations to close the mentoring gap, including leveraging technology, everyday mentoring, integrating youth voice into programming, pivoting and adjusting virtual programming and engagement strategies, and private sector resources such as employee volunteerism, philanthropic investments, and/or in-kind support. 
• Mentoring and systems change, such as creating college and career pathways, addressing poverty and truancy, focusing on youth impacted by justice involvement or substance misuse, and youth in foster care or aging out of foster care. 
• Mentoring specific youth groups, including mentoring youth of color, youth with disabilities, 2SLGBTQIA+ youth, Indigenous and Native youth, and other specific youth groups. 
• Nonprofit Management, including organizational governance, fundraising, administration, and leadership. 
• Philanthropic Partnerships, Innovations, and Engagement, including examples of private sector investments, partnerships, or internal initiatives that have accelerated innovations, learning and/or scale within the mentoring field. 
• Research and Evaluation, including new research findings, trends in data collection and outcome measurement and analysis, and research-based implications for practitioners and philanthropic investors. 
• Training and Facilitation, including methodologies to engage adult learners, presentation or facilitation skills, various training modalities (virtual vs. in-person vs. hybrid), elements of instructional design, etc. 

Based on the feedback from the 2026 National Mentoring Summit, here are some commonly requested workshop topics: 

• Navigating political climate within a mentoring program 
• Mentoring practitioner professional development 
• Executive leadership-level workshops 
• Funding 
• Group mentoring 
• AI 
• Trauma-informed mentoring 
• Mentoring immigrant youth 
• Mentor engagement 
• Grassroots mentoring programs 
• Rural mentoring 
• Volunteer management 
   

Workshop Format

LENGTH: 75 Minutes (Note: This is different from previous years when the workshops were 90 minutes long)
SIZE: Workshops will vary in size, but presenters should prepare for at least 30-60 attendees. If selected, presenters will be notified of their workshop size as the National Mentoring Summit approaches.
AUDIOVISUAL (A/V) SUPPORT: In the application process, presenters should indicate A/V needs. All rooms will have a screen, projector, gooseneck microphone attached to the podium, connection cords to Mac and PC computers, ability to play audio, Wi-Fi, a clicker to advance PowerPoint presentations, a flipchart and markers, and limited A/V support. Presenters must provide their own laptop.
ROOM SETUP: All rooms will be set up either theater-style or in round tables. If you have a preference between theater style and round tables, or a different set-up request, you must let us know in your proposal. 
ATTENDEE ENGAGEMENT: Workshops should have multiple types of audience engagement, whether that be experiential learning activities, Q&A time, use of multimedia (handouts, video, etc.)
ADDITIONAL MATERIALS: Presenters can provide additional handouts, links to resources, etc. as a supplement for attendees to view after the workshop. Presenters must provide their own handouts if applicable.

Selection Criteria

Proposals will be reviewed and selected based on the following criteria: 

• Timeliness of Topic: The topic is relevant and addresses one of the topic areas described in the “Workshop Information” section above. 
• Expertise: Presenters have clear expertise in the topic and experience in the mentoring field. 
• Methodology: Addresses the needs of adult learners, having an intentional mix of interactive and presentation components. 
• Practicality: The session provides actionable information, skills and tools that can be implemented in attendees’ work. 
• Informative: The session builds participants’ knowledge and expands their view of the mentoring field. 
• Aligned with MENTOR values: The session demonstrates an understanding of and commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. 

Selection Process and Timeline

Due Date: Sunday, May 31, 2026, at 11:59 PM EST

Review Process: Proposals will be reviewed according to the criteria outlined above by a workshop review committee made up of MENTOR National staff, MENTOR Affiliates, and other partners.  

Notification Date: Monday, July 21, 2026

If selected, presenters agree to: 

• Finalize title and public workshop description by August 4, 2026. 
• Register for the National Mentoring Summit by November 20, 2026 with knowledge that each selected workshop will be entitled to one complimentary registration and one discounted registration. 
• Notify MENTOR by November 20, 2026 if you need to cancel your workshop for any reason. 
• Secure roundtrip travel and lodging during the National Mentoring Summit (reduced rates apply at The Westin Washington, D.C. Downtown) 
• Do not sell or market products or services to attendees. For more information on being an exhibitor at the 2027 National Mentoring Summit, please contact Gabriela Castillo at gcastillo@mentoring.org. 
• Attend a presenter training session hosted by MENTOR prior to the Summit. 
• Submit PowerPoint slides and any other materials to the Speaker Resource Hub by January 27, 2027 so that participants can access slides prior to and following the Summit. 

Frequesntly Asked Questions

Please contact Jake Sullivan at summitworkshops@mentoring.org with all other questions related to this Call for Workshop Proposals.