More on Mentoring

January has been a crazy month for me. I haven't been MIA- I have been in Europe! My new focus, to keep me sane and involved in the organization, has really been this new mentoring program and kit I am working on.
I think one of the most important jobs for the VP Ed is to deal with new members and getting them involved. The mentoring program is the key to success with it. In my last entry I wrote about this new kit I am working on and things have been progressing with it since I launched it. I am getting some feedback and collaborating with a few of our frequent mentors. I am developing an idea of what they need in the kit and what can be left out.
I spent Saturday evening with one of my close friends and collaborators in Toastmasters. We were getting her re-organized for her AC-Bronze award and CL award. The conversation eventually turned to the mentoring program and my role in it. She commented that she was happy I wasn't mentoring a new member this year. She said it gave me time to mentor the mentors.
I got stuck on that idea- Mentoring Mentors. Was this really my role as VP Ed? After some thought, I realized that yes, this is my role this year. If I could properly prepare and support the mentors, then I didn't have to worry about the new members. The kit is one of the tools to do this, but there has to be more. Here are some ideas that have been coming to me:

• one-on-one meetings with mentors to review what they have been doing and how things are going.
• mentoring training sessions that must be attended before you become a mentor for the first time or any time you need a refresher.
• mentoring center on the club webpage- locked down just for members.
• official mentoring meeting time before and after the meeting.

Not all of these are going to work or are realistic, but the ideas are flowing. I will keep you posted.
What do you all think: does the VP Ed only serve as mentor to the mentors OR should they mentor new members as well?