Newton W. Robinson: Mentoring Gen Z Through the Covid-19 Pandemic and Beyond

“I believe that for us to have a healthy community we must have an educated community,” said Newton W. Robinson, President and Program Manager of the Community Mentor Network (CMN), which is headquartered in Albuquerque since 2009.

Robinson said he believes his purpose is to mentor youth to help them graduate from high school, stay away from drugs and gang violence, and take on a different approach to life. “If we can get them to understand and to stay within the educational system to graduate middle school into high school, high school into college…or just get them into a trade where they can take care of their families (when they start having them), I believe that’s my purpose, that’s what God has called me to do,” said Robinson.

In pursuit of his purpose, Robinson has developed a unique mentorship program to decrease the graduation gap of African American youth attending Albuquerque Public Schools (APS). The Community Mentor Network (CMN) volunteers go into APS classrooms to sit alongside mentees whose grade point average (GPA) has dipped below 2.5. Robinson also has partnered with Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller’s It Takes a Village initiative to mentor youth who have aged-out of the Children, Youth, and Family Department (CYFD) program. In addition, he works closely with the University of New Mexico’s (UNM) Professional Achievement Training for Transdisciplinary Health (PATH) Emerging Scholars Program, mentoring high school juniors and seniors for two weeks during the summer.

Community Mentor Network has partnered with APS to mentor middle and high school students throughout the school year. CMN offers a three-tiered mentoring approach: 

1. They sit alongside the student inside the classroom to ensure the student comprehends the subject matter and are keeping up with the teacher.

2. They tutor students one-on-one to help them with homework using classroom assignments and other resources.

3. They mentor students who may have self-esteem issues, bullying concerns, or adverse situations at home.

“We mentor them to give them as much guidance as possible to help them survive,” said Robinson. All tutoring and mentoring are conducted onsite during regular school hours by certified mentors who are background checked. Presently, CMN is partnering with Cesar Chavez Middle School, Wilson Middle School, James Monroe Middle School, and Robert F. Kennedy Charter School.

CMN has also partnered with UNM’s PATH program to mentor high school juniors and seniors who are interested in pursuing a career in the healthcare field. PATH participants must have a GPA of 2.5 or higher. During a two-week period in the summer, CMN mentors help PATH participants with their presentation skills and research paper which students present to the board of directors at the end of the program. 

Most recently Robinson has joined with Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller’s initiative, It Takes a Village, to mentor CYFD youth ages 14-23 in two classifications: those in foster parenting and those who have aged-out of the foster care system, which includes over 260 youth. Nine out of 10 youth who have aged-out of foster care do not have marketable skills, said Robinson, but through the It Takes a Village initiative, Robinson has partnered with Central New Mexico Community College and others to teach welding, woodworking, resume writing, communication, interviewing, studying, personal finance management and other life skills. 

When asked, ‘what one message would you like to communicate to the parents of the children you are mentoring,’ Robinson said parents must take time to invest in their children’s education to make our community healthy. “If I can get parents to take time to get the kids to us, and if I can get CYFD to invest in getting the aged-out kids to us, I would encourage them to do so,” he stated. Presently, mentors meet with CYFD’s aged-out youth on Wednesday’s from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the E Read Community Center which is operated by God’s House Church.

In addition to mentoring APS and CYFD youth, Robinson is a deacon at Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church of Albuquerque, where he serves on the International Missions Team. He has lived in Albuquerque for 22-plus years, and worked at Intel Corporation before retiring in 2013. In 2021, Robinson joined French Funerals & Cremations where he serves as Associate Director. 

Community Mentor Network information can be found on their website at https://communitymentornetwork.org/.