2014 Articles

Reciprocal Love: Mentoring Black and Latino Males Through an Ethos of Care

Jackson, Iesha; Sealey-Ruiz, Yolanda; Watson, Wanda

Although mentoring programs can produce positive outcomes for youth, more research is needed that offers an account of how Black and Latino male mentors and mentees experience mentoring. This phenomenological study highlights the voices of a mentor and 14 Black and Latino males who are part of the Umoja Network for Young Men (UMOJA) an all-male, in-school mentoring program at an alternative high school that serves overage, under-credited students. We extend the concept of culturally responsive caring by examining notions of reciprocal love and an ethos of care that characterize the mentor’s and mentees’ discussions of their mentoring experiences.