Blackburn Mentoring offers one-on-one mentoring and coaching for teens 13 and up, college students and young adults, by video anywhere in Delaware and in person in Los Angeles, and has been mentoring since 2014. Everything starts with a free 20 minute intro call, and families are matched with a mentor within 2 business days.

Best for:

A student who needs help planning the week, starting work and keeping track of deadlines
A college student who wants one steady person checking in every week
A young adult who is drifting and wants a clear plan for work or school
Parents who want to step back from managing every detail

Students, families and young adults anywhere in Delaware can work with a dedicated Blackburn mentor by video. The whole state runs on Eastern time, and every session is booked on your local clock, whether you are in Wilmington, Newark, Dover or near the beaches in Sussex County. Text and phone check-ins fill the days between sessions.

Three counties, three ways of life

Delaware has only three counties, and each has its own character:

New Castle County in the north: Wilmington, Newark and the suburbs that blend into the Philadelphia region, with corporate offices, banking and a college-town feel around Newark.
Kent County in the middle: Dover, the state capital, an Air Force base and a lot of farmland.
Sussex County in the south: poultry farms, small towns and the beach communities of Lewes, Rehoboth Beach and Bethany Beach, which fill up every summer.

Driving from Wilmington to the beaches takes a couple of hours on a summer weekend. For a family in western Sussex or a student in Kent, a good mentor nearby can be hard to find. Video solves that.

A small state with an outsized role in business

Delaware is famous as the legal home of a large share of American corporations, thanks to its corporate law and its specialized business court. That supports law firms, registered agents and financial services in Wilmington. Banking and credit card operations are major employers, the chemical industry has deep roots in the state, and health care has grown into one of the biggest sectors. In the south, poultry farming and summer tourism carry the economy.

For young adults, that mix means many first jobs are in finance, law, health care or seasonal work at the shore. Our page on the first job after college covers the common challenges.

Close to everything, which shapes college choices

Delaware students attend public districts, a number of charter schools, and Catholic and independent schools concentrated around Wilmington. After high school, the state has public universities, including a historically Black university, a statewide community college system, and several private colleges.

Because Philadelphia, Baltimore, New Jersey and Washington are all close, many Delaware students look across state lines for college, and many students from neighboring states come to Delaware. It is common for a student to be an hour or two from home: close enough to come back often, far enough to lose the daily structure of high school.

Putting it together

Here is how mentoring tends to fit at different stages in Delaware:

High school: a weekly plan for school, activities and a summer job at the beach, with a parent or guardian involved from the intro call onward. See mentoring for high school students.
The first year of college: steady contact through the transition, whether the student is in Newark or out of state. See college transition mentoring.
College years: routines, deadlines and decisions about a major: mentoring for college students.
Young adulthood: career, money and moving out, especially for graduates commuting to Philadelphia or working in Wilmington: young adult mentoring.

Pages for Delaware and nearby areas

Parents can start with our page for families, and anyone can read how online mentoring works. Other states are on our mentoring by state page.

What starting out looks like in the First State

Delaware’s year swings with the shore. From Memorial Day to Labor Day, the beach towns in Sussex County fill with visitors and summer workers, and many Delaware teens earn a first paycheck on a boardwalk, at a restaurant or at a farm stand along Route 1. In fall and winter, Sussex quiets down and the state’s center of gravity moves back north to the Wilmington and Newark area, where school, sports and suburban schedules dominate.

The north feels like part of a larger metro: many families in Hockessin, Pike Creek, Bear and Middletown work in Wilmington or commute into Pennsylvania, and fast growth around Middletown and Smyrna has stretched drive times on Route 1. Early careers often begin in banking and financial operations, legal and corporate services, chemistry and science, health care and government, while Kent and Sussex lean on agriculture, poultry processing, the Air Force base and tourism. Delaware has no sales tax, which helps a little, but rents near Wilmington and the beaches can still squeeze a young adult starting out.

Situations Delaware families and young adults often navigate

A Sussex County teen working long summer shifts at the beach who needs a plan for the school year that follows.
A student in Kent County deciding between a nearby campus and a school across a state line.
A young adult starting in a financial operations center with early mornings, set metrics and little guidance on where the role leads.
A military family at Dover moving in midyear and helping a teen settle into a new school.
A graduate commuting from Middletown to a first job and trying to save toward an apartment.

All of Delaware is on Eastern time, and sessions run by video on your own clock; our in-person sessions are limited to Los Angeles. Delaware’s SEED scholarship has long helped eligible graduates start college at in-state public options, but requirements change, so check Delaware’s official education site and read starting at community college and education rules by state. Military families may find mentoring for military families useful. Our area page is Wilmington, Delaware.

Common questions

What time zone do you use for Delaware?

Eastern time, statewide. A 4 pm session in Dover is 1 pm for a mentor in Los Angeles, and evenings are easy to schedule.

My student goes to college in Pennsylvania or Maryland. Can the mentor still work with them?

Yes. Sessions are online, so the mentor works with the student wherever they enroll and, with permission, keeps the family in Delaware informed.

Can sessions continue over a summer at the beach?

Yes. As long as there is a quiet spot and a connection, sessions continue through summer jobs and family trips.

Do you meet in person in Wilmington?

No. Our team is based in Los Angeles, and Delaware clients work with their mentor entirely by video.

Get started

Would it help to talk through what your family needs? Call (888) 305 5422, email contact@blackburnmentoring.com or start with a short assessment. A member of our team reviews every assessment personally and sets up a free intro call.

Last updated November 2, 2026.

Book a free intro call Text us

Free, by video, 20 minutes, with a member of our team. Weekdays 9 to 5 Pacific.

Online Mentoring and Coaching in Delaware