Faculty Writings

Mentoring is as old as civilization itself. Through this natural, relational process, experience and values have been passed from one generation to the next. Much of the training of people in the biblical accounts happened in the advising context such as in the cases of Eli and Samuel, Elijah and Elisha, Moses and Joshua, Mordecai and Esther, Barnabas and Paul, and Paul and Timothy. Until recent years, mentoring (the development of a person) was a way of life between the generations. It was assumed, expected, and therefore, almost unnoticed because of its commonness in human under-standing. Mentoring was the chief learning method in the society of artisans where an apprentice spent years at the side of the craftsman, studying not only the mechanics of a trade, but the way of life which surrounded it. Whether it was with a farmer on his farm, at the university where the student learned in the home of a scholar, or with the knight who imparted warrior skills to his novices, mentoring was the primary means of passing on knowledge and skills in every field of every culture.

In more recent history, the learning process has shifted to classrooms, books, videos, and computers. The relational connection between the information and experience giver and receiver has weakened or is often nonexistent. Something very precious has been lost.

Today, however, society is beginning to realize once again that the learning and maturing process takes time and many kinds of relationships. The self-made person is a myth and can leave the person relationally deficient and narrow-minded. Even with internships, guidance counselors, and advisors, the process and focus on people-development has not been natural or built-in. The resurgence of interest in mentoring in almost every occupational field and area of life appears to be a response to this discovery.

In my own life history, I have had a number of significant mentoring relationships, both professionally and personally, for which I am very grateful. For me, mentoring and developing others has also become a calling and a life-on-life approach to teaching, training, and turning over. It impacts my time with students and others, both informally and formally.

Today, the mention of mentoring can be found in many kinds of publications – a salute to the increased interest in leadership development for the next generation. A mentor has been seen primarily as a person, usually older and more practiced, who is able and willing to help a protégé get where he or she wants to go. The mentor takes a special interest in helping the protégé move up the corporate or institutional ladder, clears the way, gives some travel tips, and smoothes rough edges. The mentor concentrates on providing a map and fixing the road, rather than on the growth. Those of us travelers who educate adults should focus on helping the protégé become a competent traveler. In this way, the mentor serves as a trusted guide, rather than a tour director.

Active forms of mentoring include discipling, spiritual guidance, coaching, counseling, teaching, and sponsoring. More passive forms include being influenced by contemporary and historical models, and divine appointments or interventions.

Sharon Daloz Parks in her booklet, "The University as a Mentoring Environment," suggests that having a mentor is not enough, but that we need mentoring communities and environments that encourage the forging of faithful life and practice for students as they face the larger society and today’s unpredictable world.

Fuller Theological Seminary’s J. Robert Clinton, in his book, Connecting, demonstrates that few biblical and contemporary leaders finish well. For those who have, significant relationships have made a difference. Therefore, in a more spiritual and transformational sense, mentoring can be seen as “leadership living insurance” and may well be a key to helping more leaders of all ages finish well.

Grace Preedy Barnes, Ph.D., is the director of the Master of Arts in Social Science: Leadership Studies Program, Operation Impact Program, and an associate professor in the Department of Higher Education and Organizational Leadership.