Big Brothers Big Sisters of PEI: Our Theory of Change
So, what is Theory Of Change?
If you’ve spent time around the Big Brothers Big Sisters organization, chances are you’ve heard us talk about our “Theory of Change”. Stroking with a broad brush, the Theory of Change is our mentality behind running our day-to-day operations. This mentality is based on three main components: our mission, our vision, and the measurable outcomes of our programming. The Theory of Change helps us by serving as a guidepost to build our programs around both on a provincial and national level. But what is it actually? Let’s start with the mission.
Our Mission
To enable life-changing mentoring relationships to ignite the power and potential of young people.
This mission statement really sums up the entire goal of our organization – to help youth across Prince Edward Island who face adversity gain the resources to reach their full potential. We do this by matching Bigs and Littles together to create what we refer to as “developmental relationships”, giving youth a friendly and dependable figure in their lives that they can grow with.
Developmental relationships are key to all aspects of our Theory of Change because of a few main components. Primarily, these relationships help youth reach their full potential by challenging growth – they provide these kids with a safe and caring environment where they can gain the confidence to push themselves to grow both socially and emotionally. By creating a continuously caring relationship, these Littles have the reassurance to achieve all that they can. We strongly believe that developmental relationships are the core of our organization, and without them, we wouldn’t be able to achieve our mission or realize our vision for Prince Edward Island.
Our Vision
All young people realize their full potential.
All of our efforts as an organization are in an attempt to realize this vision. Starting with traditional mentoring, we’ve since expanded our programs drastically in order to reach as many island youth as possible, in the hopes that we can help all young people on our beautiful island realize their full potential. These efforts are especially impactful when looking at the findings from research group Boston Consulting who did a detailed study on Big Brothers Big Sisters mentoring and found that youth who received mentoring were
- 17% more likely to be gainfully employed
- 50% more likely to volunteer
- 60% more likely to report feeling consistently happy and 45% more likely to report feeling confident
- 50% more likely to have a strong social network
While all of these statistics are encouraging, the last two points are especially important. The fact that youth who receive mentoring with us are 60% more likely to report feeling consistently happy, and 45% more likely to report feeling confident, lets us know that we are doing our job – giving youth the confidence to achieve their full potential. Living on Prince Edward Island, we are all blessed to have such a strong sense of community – the fact that our mentoring helps youth build on this beautiful social network we have on PEI makes all of our efforts worthwhile.
Using our theory of change as a guide, we hope to continue making a positive impact on our youth, our community, and our island. If you are interested in volunteering with us, becoming a mentor, or you know of a young person who could benefit from our programs, don’t hesitate to reach out.
How Do We Ignite Potential?
We empower young people by:
- Intentionally recruiting to meet the unique needs of our Island’s youth.
- Professionally screening and matching young people with dedicated volunteer mentors.
- Providing ongoing support from professional caseworkers throughout the mentoring journey.
- Training and supporting mentees, mentors, and their families.
- Building Developmental Relationships that:
- Express Care
- Challenge Growth
- Provide Support
- Share Power
- Expand Possibilities
- Graduating the match relationship toward natural and enduring support systems.
Who Do We Serve?
We serve young people facing adversity who need an additional, consistent, and supportive Developmental Relationship. We serve Island youth across PEI, and our programs are for those aged 6 to 18 years old.
What is the Impact?
Young people who participate in our programs achieve measurable outcomes in three key areas:
1. Social-Emotional Competence
- Relationship skills
- Social awareness
- Responsible decision-making
- Self-management
- Self-awareness
2. Mental Health & Wellbeing
- Positive identity
- Mental wellness
- Social inclusion & empowerment
3. Educational Engagement & Employment Readiness
- Strong school connectedness
- Commitment to learning
- Enhanced constructive use of time
This “Theory of Change” is a framework implemented across all Big Brothers Big Sisters agencies in Canada, ensuring that every young person has the opportunity to thrive.
If you believe in this mission and vision, join us in making a difference. Together, we can ignite potential and create life-changing relationships that shape the future of PEI’s youth.