[Archived] Alexandria Court Service Unit Seeks Males to Serve As Mentors for At-Risk Boys, Ages 11 and 12

City Press Release


	For Immediate Release	For More Information, Contact
	April 4, 2007 PIO# 086-07/rdo	Steve Mason, Director of Communications, at 703.838.4300 Raynard Owens, Communications Officer, at 703.838.4300

Alexandria Court Service Unit Seeks Males to Serve
As Mentors for At-Risk Boys, Ages 11 and 12
Mentors Team with Youth and Produce a Short Movie
Orientation Takes Place on Tuesday, April 10

The Alexandria Court Service Unit is seeking adult males to serve as mentors for at-risk boys, ages 11 and 12. Mentors will team with youth in the iMentor program to produce a short movie on a topic of interest. An orientation for individuals who are interested in serving as mentors will be held on Tuesday, April 10, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. in the library of the George Washington Middle School, located at 1005 Mount Vernon Ave.

Individuals make a one-year commitment to the program, which begins in April, and attend a weekly workshop with youth to establish a mentoring relationship, learn the fundamentals of filmmaking, and help young participants acquire life and technological skills. The workshops will include lessons in digital video, storyboarding, and film editing. Workshops will be held on Tuesdays from 6 to 8 p.m. from April through November.

Mentors and youth will produce a short movie using a digital video camera and Apple technology (iPhoto, iMovie, iTunes, and GarageBand). Each movie will debut at a community film festival.

Teams are encouraged to select movie topics that promote civic engagement, such as “How Bill Euille Became Mayor,” “What It Takes to Become an Alexandria Fireman,” and “A Night on the Beat with an Alexandria Cop.”

The iMentor program is part of the Alexandria Mentoring Partnership, a collaborative effort of 13 mentoring programs and City of Alexandria staff.

For more information on the iMentor program or to serve as a mentor, call Linda Odell at 703-838-4144, extension 251, or e-mail linda.odell@alexandriava.gov.

# # #