mentorship plan

Mentorship Evaluation
Jasmine
From: Lisa Rasmussen, the Art Teacher at LCC

I began this mentorship at the request of Jasmines social worker.
These our my observations thus far:
In my art room, Jasmines behavior is magical. She is an artist to the soul and very gifted. I have never seen her act out ever in the art room!! She is a hyper sensitive and creative soul, who has ended up in circumstances beyond her control. While creating she has the gift of intuition and spontaneity. She becomes immersed in the process as a whole. Also, on our outings she was an overly conscious young lady, she was totally aware of social protocol. Her enthusiasm and demeanor for the arts and culture made our outings really enjoyable and interesting.
Communication
On the outings when she wanted to leave a situation she communicated it eloquently. For example at the DeYoung Art Museum she said “ I am feeling sad, I just want to home.” I just want to be alone. “

Success
Jasmines artwork has been published three times and she has sold over four paintings.
Mentorship Plan
1. With her therapist we created guidelines for Jasmine to grow and awaken to being the arts community. Most importantly to use art as a vehicle to heal and express unsettling and toxic emotions.
2. The main component was that art was not to be taken away for punitive measures. Art was therapy and a space for Jasmine to be.
3. Outings would happen if Jasmine were in good for two days in her behavior we would have an opportunity to take a local outing. If she was in program for a week we could go on an outing to San Francisco.
The Challenge
There was no consistency with this mentorship. It did not exist. I saw Jasmine sporadically over the three months. We only went on three outings. In July, Jasmine did not think the mentorship was still going on.
Mainly, I did not see her because her staff holding her back for consequences, as well as in summer school they also went on weekly outings. I do know of two incidences were she was held back from the outings and prohibited from going to art.
It is the collective mentality at LCC that art is a reward. In many instances art class has been taken away by staff for punitive measures. Art is not seen as therapeutic, but a privilege. **This mind set is for all the clients at Lincoln. In turn when a client is in program, they are encouraged to have special art time with me. (one on one time)
Final Thoughts
Jasmine thrives in art. It seems to be a place were she feels safe and at home. I look forward to working with her in the future on a more consistent basis.