MODERN MENTORSHIP: The Solution that Has No Name: Revisiting Cyclical Mentorship

This article is in reference to the concept of Cyclical Mentorship. Read more about the working theory here. 

Since diving into the research that led to my work on Cyclical Mentorship in 2017, I have been thinking deeply on the concept of mentorship, especially in the arts and cultural education ecosystem, and how we can shift - or expand - the narrative. Some of the most compelling empirical evidence I have gathered involves conversations around mentorship, but there’s a major twist: these conversations are never directly about mentorship. 

Last week, my partner and I were sitting in a casual conversation circle at an outdoor party hosted by a group of volunteer mediators. These folks work with youth and adults in the community to engage in a form of talk therapy that leads to conflict resolution. After appetizers and pleasantries, we organically started a conversation about youth intervention programs rooted in restorative justice. As is my nature, I brought art and creativity into the conversation, describing the work I have done using documentary theatre in the classroom and my work with early childhood students. Coming from other fields of thought (primarily science, law, psychology, and social work) they were jazzed to have an artist in the mix to talk about the connections between social-emotional learning, creativity, healing, and justice. At one point in this informal chat, I mentioned the power of young people to be change agents in our communities. At that moment, the conversation decidedly shifted. 

A Shared Experience without Terminology

Suddenly, the floodgates opened and, one-by-one, folks were sharing heartfelt moments of transformation in programs they’d been a part of that ceded power to young people in the community. One person interjected: “They have so much wisdom to share, and giving them this autonomy in the decision-making opens so many doors for them - but also for us adults.” Each comment was met with a cacophony of fervent agreement. This group of folks (many of whom had never met) were now deep in conversation about youth-led programs that had worked, and eventually extended their focus into a larger theme. “I love that we have younger volunteers leading our community mentorship efforts,” said the founding director. “They have fresh ideas that we can all learn from.” She proceeded to list the initiatives of emerging staff and volunteers who were already leading the organization in a justice-driven, youth-centered, constructive direction. The group continued down this rabbit hole of experiences, insights, and anecdotes - and yet - nobody ever actually named these phenomena. They were all similar, but never once was a codified umbrella term proposed.

They were literally describing our working theory of Cyclical Mentorship, and I’d certainly be lying if I said these types of conversations don’t happen all the time. As I think back to other interactions I’ve had in the past few years, there have been multiple occasions when people (both in and outside the arts & cultural education ecosystem) engage in deep and typically impassioned exchanges around this idea of “who gets to be the question-asker and the answer-giver,” as one colleague described it to me last year. They might call it a reframing of our mindset, or write it off as “just a neat idea,” or even describe a mentorship program in a small town that feels novel - but they can never really put their finger on what the secret sauce is that makes it great. 

Impacts Within the Field… and Beyond

Above all else, this is the most exciting prospect for me as a researcher, and for Creative Generation’s impact on mentorship studies: naming it. We’ve all felt this type of innovative idea (and arguably intuitive in practice) at some point, so inculcating the core tenets of Cyclical Mentorship in our institutions, programs, and work environments would help to make major shifts in the way we think and talk about power. Not only can we collectively change our collective mindset about how we define mentorship (in theory and in practice) within the arts & cultural fields, we can have a wider impact on mentorship more generally. Envision us creating a ripple so strong that we could reframe how institutions balance power, reimagine internships and apprenticeships, and rethink how we structure our cultural norms around youth voice and ageism. Wow! If any field has the creative power to sway the masses, it’s arts and culture. If any age group has the creative passion to do make it happen, it’s young people. So, let’s get to work. 

What Can I Do? 

No matter where you are in the arts and cultural education ecosystem, you can create change in your sphere of influence. In the past year, as I switch hats between my various roles in and outside the field (teaching artist, theatrical actor & director, political activist, Creative Generation’s Director of Research & Learning, etc.) I challenge myself to think of my actions through the lens of Cyclical Mentorship. What am I doing to uphold the barriers of a power shift? What am I actively doing to empower the young people I work with? How do my words and actions imply my feelings about who I am willing to learn from?

The most important change each of us can make at this point is to regularly reflect on how what we do matches up with the theory of Cyclical Mentorship. Walk the talk. Embody what we so deeply believe. I promise, once you get into this habit, you won’t be able to untangle your daily interactions from these principles. My partner often jokes that I can connect anything to Cyclical Mentorship now (and he isn’t wrong!). This type of self-awareness has been extremely helpful for my work as I now make a conscious effort to adjust my actions to match the recommendations I offer to the field in my forthcoming research.

So, next time you’re in one of those inevitable conversations where someone can’t quite articulate a nebulous idea about mentorship, be sure to share this blog post with them - it might be exactly the words they were searching for.