ABOUT DR. JOSELYN MITCHELL-PARKER:
Dr. Joselyn Parker recently completed her doctoral program at The Ohio State University where she has taught Equity & Diversity and Social Justice in Education and Urban Teaching and Learning. Parker has received several awards during her time at OSU including: The Dr. Bob’s Diversity Scholarship, The Billy Hill Scholarship for literacy, the Graduate Enrichment Fellowship, as well as The Critical Difference for Women Award which she was awarded for her intersectional scholarship in the fields of Education and Women and Gender Studies.
A self-proclaimed Freedom Dreamer, Parker’s research seeks to disrupt injustices and ignite social change by amplifying the voices, stories and experiences of the most vulnerable through artistic expressions. Parker offers insight into the power and potential of art to push beyond narratives of victimization, discrimination, but rather consider what are essential literacy practices where marginalized groups are also granted liberties to dream.
RESOURCES:
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southeast Michigan (BBBS)
TRANSCRIPTION:
David Fair: This is 89.1 WEMU, and we all need people to look up to and to turn to. It's particularly important when we're young people. I'm David Fair, and welcome to Washtenaw United. It's our weekly exploration of equity and opportunity in our community. Busy work life, single-parent homes, food and housing insecurity--it can make it very difficult for adults to always be there when their children need them. That's where Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southeast Michigan plays a role, and there are most certainly challenges to meeting the community need. Our guest today is Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker, and she is interim CEO and President of the organization. And Dr. Mitchell-Parker, thank you so much for the time today! I appreciate it!
Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker: Absolutely, Dave! Thanks for having me!
David Fair: I'd like to step back for a moment and take a look at the organization's service to the region. In August of 2023, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Detroit merged with the Washtenaw County chapter. Why was that deemed the appropriate step to best serve the young people in our region?
Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker: You know what, David? I wasn't here during that merger, so I don't have the historical context of the why. But I do believe that there were some situations that deemed it an appropriate collaboration with one another, so that the net would be wider and the reach would be stronger. I mean, you're bringing the best of the best from both organizations together to really make a true impact on Southeast Michigan as a whole. You know, you talk about Washtenaw County and Metro Detroit. The distance between the two really isn't a lot.
David Fair: Right.
Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker: So, there's a lot of ground to cover, and I think that bringing both of those organizations together was really smart, so that the net....I mean, you can reach more kids, more families, make more impact, more schools. There's just a greater opportunity there. And so, while I wasn't here during the initial merger, I really do believe that it was beneficial for the outcome.
David Fair: Well, there's certainly opportunity there. When you combine resources, improve efficiency and increase since you've been there, have you seen that come to pass? Are more people being served?
Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker: I will say that there's a strategy around how. And so, what I will say is, after 2020, there was a decline in folks being in space, like at work, so a lot of our mentoring was happening through workspaces, and a lot of people are working from home now.
David Fair: Right.
Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker: When COVID happened, schools weren't in. And so, there was a lot of shutdown. So, we're in a rebuilding phase, I would say. And I see us rebuilding to get to the numbers that we were pre-COVID for sure.
David Fair: Now I believe as we try and recover from the pandemic, there is a waiting list for young people who want to be paired with a mentor. How long is that list?
Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker: David, it's too long! It's way too long! And to be honest, we have about 120 boys, specifically, sitting on a waitlist looking for mentors, and we find it very interesting that it is our young men that we see the need the most that don't have a mentor. Women come in droves to come and support. And so, we're able to match girls fairly quickly, but it's the men. It's the young boys that we are not matching as quickly. And so, I think there's just an awareness piece that needs to happen.
David Fair: Our Washtenaw United conversation with Dr, Joselyn Mitchell-Parker continues on 89.1 WEMU. She is interim CEO and President of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southeast Michigan. And, Doctor, is part of the hesitation, you think, among the men who could become mentors the perception that there is too big a time obligation and commitment?
Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker: Yeah, I think there's a number of things, and I think that that certainly is one of them. You know, a lot of times when people think that they're going to mentor and impact a young person's life, they think that they have to be perfect. I guess my life has to be in order, and that's just what we want to debunk. We don't need perfection. We just need folks who care and are willing to show up.
David Fair: And for those who might be interested, what kind of programmatic support is offered by Big Brothers Big Sisters to those who choose to volunteer and mentor?
Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker: Absolutely! So, we provide what we call mass support specialists, who is like your person, right? Like so, if you have an issue that comes up, you have a person that you can call and say, "Hey, my little is saying or is saying these things," or "I'm a little unsure about how to handle a situation." We have experts that will help to guide through. Also, we have an enhancements team that does a great job of providing free to low cost events. So, if you don't know what to do with your little and we can say, "Hey, we have this event going on here. We're providing this free activity. We get tickets all the time." And so, there's always a way to kind of keep folks engaged, but also support them through that, so they don't feel alone while they're trying to navigate this new relationship that they have with a young person.
David Fair: You know, kids today--and adults too--are facing so many different issues. Wage and income disparity--a huge and growing issue all across the country. Washtenaw County, as a matter of fact, is among the most economically segregated anywhere in the country. How does Big Brothers Big Sisters go about addressing the financial and the racial inequities in its service to communities?
Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker: Yeah. I mean, we recently just banded together as an agency to help to support families who had their SNAP benefits affected. We're always out, always making connections with folks, always building our resource guide, so that when people do come to us and say, "Hey, I'm having this issue," we have a resource to provide to them. Now, that we're not saying that we are the end-all be-all resource. We understand that Washtenaw County, Wayne County, and all the other counties that we serve have a wealth of resources, but a lot of times, people just don't know that they're there. And if we don't have the supports, we're going to help that person and guide them, so that they get the resources that they need.
David Fair: It is often said that if you really want to help people, meet them where they're at. How do you go about doing that?
Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker: Absolutely, yes! We believe in going out into the communities, and I think that, with that being said with the merger, we can even do a better job of being in the community and letting people know who we are and going and just having conversation with folks. We can't always expect folks to come to us or to find us, but it's really important for us to let them know that we are here. It's not a cookie-cutter organization. We adapt our services based on the needs of the people.
David Fair: We're talking with the interim President and CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southeast Michigan, Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker. She's our guest on Washtenaw United on WEMU. At the heart of everything we're talking about is relationships. Why are the relationships fostered in your program different from some of the other available mentoring options?
Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker: I think we pride ourselves on being unique in the one-to-one mentoring relationships. Having that one-to-one person, that person that you can go to, it creates a different type of relationship. We have young folks who have been with their "big., It's what we call them, so our mentors are called "bigs" and our mentees are called "littles," that have been with their bigs and little relationships for years--eight, nine, ten years. Some of them have been at their bigs' weddings, right? Like, we go to graduations. There's just this communal, family-generated thing that happens when you have a one-to-one mentoring relationship.
David Fair: And how does that relationship manifest in the littles?
Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker: By really having somebody that they can go to at all times. I was not a part of Big Brothers Big Sisters, but I did have a mentor that was really influential in my life. I come from a city called Youngstown, Ohio. Youngstown is a very unique place, and the narrative that comes from Youngstown is that nothing really good comes from this place. And I had somebody that really helped me to debunk that myth: that there are great things that come from that place. There are good people. And I think that it was, because of that mentoring relationship that I had, I was able to go to a person who knew things that I didn't know and helped me to explore places that I didn't have maybe opportunities to explore. And it's the same thing with us. With our one-to-one mentoring organization, it really is the opportunity for access, belonging and to have somebody that values a young person. And so, it changes the trajectory of their lives, and it really does. And we know that this works. We know that this works. The research tells us that one-to-one mentoring relationships work. So, that's why the impact is so real for a young person.
David Fair: I'm curious as to whether the feedback you get from the volunteers and the bigs, the mentors, reflected they were surprised at just how much they got from being in these relationships.
Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker: Absolutely! That's actually the main thing we hear. You know, folks go into Big Brothers Big Sisters a lot of times as mentors thinking that they're going to help a young person, and that's a great goal to have is to be there to support a young person. But what we're often hearing in our feedback is how much the young person helped them. How much being involved in a young life has helped to do something for the volunteer to help them to see themselves in ways that they didn't see themselves before, to help to challenge them in their growth, their emotional well-being. Being a part of some of the programs that we put on and what they get from it, it's really amazing to see, to hear. It's beautiful, because it's not just about helping that young person, but really, we're finding that the volunteers are walking away just as full and just as fulfilled as these young people are. And so that's really one of the greatest takeaways is that it's not a a one-sided impact. It's really an impact for everybody. It really is!
David Fair: Doctor, thank you so much for taking the time and having the conversation with me today! I truly appreciate it!
Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker: Absolutely! And thank you! Thank you for having us and wanting to know more about the work that we're doing at Big Brothers Big Sisters!
David Fair: That is Dr. Joselyn Mitchell-Parker. She is interim President and CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southeast Michigan, and our guest on Washtenaw United. For more information on the organization and the work it's doing, stop by our website at WEMU.org. We'll get you connected everywhere you want to go. Washtenaw United is produced in partnership with the United Way for Southeast Michigan, and you hear it every Monday. I'm David Fair, and this is your community NPR station, 89.1 WEMU-FM Ypsilanti.
WEMU has partnered with the United Way for Southeastern Michigan to explore the people, organizations, and institutions creating opportunity and equity in our area. And, as part of this ongoing series, you’ll also hear from the people benefiting and growing from the investments being made in the areas of our community where there are gaps in available services. It is a community voice. It is 'Washtenaw United.'
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