The most important aspect of mentoring is the relationship. Trust, confidence, enthusiasm, and commitment to the relationship are keys to successful programs. CAM strives to find suitable matches for each student by conducting thorough screenings, training and support.

Access Coaches are trained to foster and sustain effective relationships by doing the following:

• Maintaining a steady presence in each student's life.
• Focusing on the student's needs ---not the coach's.
• Getting to know the family without getting over-involved.
• Seeking out and using the help of the CAM support staff.

To contrast, less effective relationships may include the following:

• Irregular/inconsistent meeting times.
• Using an authoritarian tone.
• Putting more emphasis on the student's behavior than on the relationship.
• Imposing values inconsistent with the child's life.

Youth mentoring is a relationship between an adult and a child, with the goal of assisting youth in achieving personal, academic, career, and/or social goals. According to Jean Rhodes in her 2001 article entitled: Youth Mentoring in Perspective, 'an estimated five million American youth are involved in school and community-based volunteer mentoring programs, ranging from the prototypic Big Brothers/Big Sisters to other, less structured programs.' (Rhodes, J. (2001) 'Youth Mentoring in Perspective', The Center Summer. Republished in the encyclopedia of informal education, www.infed.org/learningmentors/youth_mentoring_in_perspective.htm. Last updated: March 2003.)