{"id":67764,"date":"2025-12-22T19:02:12","date_gmt":"2025-12-22T19:02:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/67764\/"},"modified":"2025-12-22T19:02:12","modified_gmt":"2025-12-22T19:02:12","slug":"new-philly-mentorship-program-promises-long-term-help-for-kids-and-families","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/67764\/","title":{"rendered":"New Philly mentorship program promises long-term help for kids and families"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sign up for Chalkbeat Philadelphia\u2019s free newsletter<\/a> to keep up with news on the city\u2019s public school system.<\/p>\n

The secret to a perfect dirt bowl snack isn\u2019t in the pudding, or the crushed Oreos, or even the gummy worms. It\u2019s about patience, according to Kevin Kelley.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s something second graders Donte and Chris and first grader Derrick are working on one Wednesday after school with Kelley and Justin Agard, their mentors.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust a little bit, pour it slowly since it\u2019s a liquid,\u201d Kelley said, watching as the boys cautiously tipped a jug of milk into measuring cups and stirred in whipped topping.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat tastes good!\u201d exclaimed Donte. \u201cLike, real good. But I need more Oreos.\u201d <\/p>\n

Kelley, a Philadelphia native, works with Donte and Chris and six other Philly youngsters through a new nonprofit program called Friends of the Children Philadelphia<\/a>. (Chalkbeat is using pseudonyms for the kids to protect their identities.)<\/p>\n

The program serves at-risk young kids, starting at ages 4 to 6, who have experienced trauma due to gun violence, poverty, family incarceration, abuse, or other adverse factors that can affect their mental health and academic performance. <\/p>\n

\"\"Justin Agard plays foosball with three kids he mentors through Friends of the Children Philadelphia. (Carly Sitrin \/ Chalkbeat) <\/p>\n

Friends of the Children isn\u2019t a typical after-school program or mentorship \u2014 Kelley will be with his little ones and their families consistently for the next three years, at least. Friends of the Children offers families a commitment that the program will be there in a child\u2019s life from kindergarten through high school graduation \u2014 \u201c12+ no matter what,\u201d they say.<\/p>\n

Betty Handy, executive director of Friends of the Children Philadelphia, said the model is based on rigorous research<\/a> that shows long-term, stable, positive relationships with a caring adult<\/a> can make a meaningful difference in a child\u2019s life. She said she believes the program can help lessen generational poverty in the city and keep young people out of the prison system.<\/p>\n

While it\u2019s new to Philly, the organization has branches in more than 30 locations nationwide<\/a>. A five-year study of the program<\/a> found \u201csignificant effects\u201d in favor of the model, including students reporting less trouble in school and greater emotional strengths. In its first year in Philadelphia, the program served 24 children.<\/p>\n

We’re here to help.<\/p>\n

Every day, Chalkbeat Philadelphia reporters are answering your questions, following the money, and digging into what’s happening in the city’s public schools. Keep up with our free newsletter, delivered every Wednesday and Friday morning.<\/p>\n

Each mentor, called a Friend, is required to sign a three- to five-year full-time paid contract and takes on a caseload of around eight kids from North Philly and Kensington who have been referred to the program by school staff, community organizations, or foster care workers. Those Friends become immersed in that child\u2019s life starting at elementary school and stay with them through fifth grade graduation and potentially beyond. In its first year, the program had three Friends on staff, but is looking to grow that number.<\/p>\n

The Friends sit in on classes in school, they can attend report card meetings, offer homework help, take the kids on trips to the library or aquarium. Currently, the program is working with kids at William D. Kelley Elementary and Bayard Taylor Elementary schools, as well as the North 10 Lenfest community center.<\/p>\n

The Friends also act as a lifeline for caregivers who are trying to find employment or get back to school themselves.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not prescribing what they need, but we are offering support in a way that keeps their dignity intact\u201d Handy said.<\/p>\n

Kelley may help a parent navigate a job-hiring process or point them to the right city contact person if their heat or electricity goes out. If one of his kids is struggling with behavioral challenges in the classroom, Kelley will speak with the teacher, the student, and the caregivers to come up with a comprehensive plan to work through any issues.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe most important aspect is we start them young,\u201d Handy, known by the kids in the program as \u201cMama Betty\u201d said. \u201cWe do early intervention, and we are here to guide the child, one on one, for several years, staying in their lives, to see them succeed.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"ABetty Handy, known by the young people she mentors as “Mama Betty,” says the Friends of the Children program model is effective, research-backed, and will have a ripple effect over time. (Carly Sitrin \/ Chalkbeat) <\/p>\n

For Justin Agard, another Friend in the program, caring for these kids is personal. <\/p>\n

In 2007, while Agard was at Temple University, his younger brother was murdered in New York City for his rumored involvement with gangs and drugs. Years later, one of Agard\u2019s son\u2019s friends \u2014 whom he had coached \u2014 fell victim to gun violence. <\/p>\n

After his brother\u2019s death, Agard got involved in anti-violence work, coaching, substitute teaching, and working within the foster care system. He and his wife raised successful kids of their own and thought of fostering or adopting.<\/p>\n

When he discovered Friends of the Children, he realized their model \u201cis what I\u2019ve always felt was missing\u201d in the behavioral health field in the city he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt just made me feel like I can really impact a kid\u2019s life for the better over a long period of time\u201d Agard said. <\/p>\n

Kelley and Agard are both Black men and they say that representation is vital to relationship-building, trust-building, and the ability to make young Black kids like Donte, Chris, and Derrick feel supported, understood, and safe.<\/p>\n

For young Black men, who make up the majority of the kids the program serves, asking for help can be really hard, Kelley said. The kids he works with are learning to become comfortable making mistakes in front of Kelley and asking for assistance with things like reading or spelling in a safe space. They work on confidence-building and emotional regulation in addition to academics.<\/p>\n

Kelley said when he\u2019s working with his eight kids through the program, he\u2019s constantly thinking about a line his nana, a longtime Philadelphia school district teacher, used to say to him: \u201cI love you and there\u2019s nothing you can do about it.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"AThree kids play together at Friends of the Children’s North Philly clubhouse, where they also work on their academics. (Carly Sitrin \/ Chalkbeat) <\/p>\n

The Friends program just wrapped its first operating year this past August, Handy said, but she\u2019s already thinking about expanding to South Philly and other neighborhoods where young kids are at risk.<\/p>\n

Handy said she\u2019s aware of the good they can do for Philly\u2019s youngest learners and their families. But it\u2019s a duty and a responsibility she and Kelley and Agard don\u2019t take lightly.<\/p>\n

\u201cLives are in the balance,\u201d Handy said. \u201cToo many times there are adults who don\u2019t show up for our youth. But our Friends at Friends of the Children, they show up.\u201d <\/p>\n

Carly Sitrin is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Philadelphia. Contact Carly at csitrin@chalkbeat.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sign up for Chalkbeat Philadelphia\u2019s free newsletter to keep up with news on the city\u2019s public school system.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":67765,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[7623,35806,28,69,71,70,7625],"class_list":["post-67764","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-philadelphia","tag-chalkbeat","tag-friends-of-the-children-of-philadelphias-headquarters-in-the-northern-liberties-neighborhood-of-philly","tag-pennsylvania","tag-philadelphia","tag-philadelphia-headlines","tag-philadelphia-news","tag-philly"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67764","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=67764"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67764\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/67765"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=67764"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=67764"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=67764"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}