Blackburn Mentoring offers one-on-one mentoring and coaching for teens 13 and up, college students and young adults, by video anywhere in Minnesota 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 teen who will listen to another adult on school and plans more readily than to a parent
- A student heading into a big step, such as senior year or the first year of college
- A young adult building routines around work, money and independence
- Busy or rural households where getting to an office every week is not realistic
Anyone in Minnesota can work with a dedicated Blackburn mentor by video. The whole state is on Central time, two hours ahead of our Los Angeles team, and every session is booked in your local time. High school students (with a parent involved), college students, young adults and professionals meet their mentor online each week, with text and phone check-ins in between.
Why video makes sense in Minnesota
Two reasons stand out. The first is distance: more than half the state lives in the Twin Cities area, but the rest is spread across farm country in the south and west, lake country in the middle, and the North Shore and Iron Range in the northeast. The second is winter. A weekly appointment that depends on driving in January is a weekly appointment that gets canceled. Online sessions keep going in any weather.
Regions and the work that drives them
The Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul host a remarkable number of large corporate headquarters for a metro of their size, across retail, food, finance and health care, along with a strong medical device industry. Rochester is built around a world-known medical center and the health care jobs that come with it. Duluth sits on Lake Superior with a port, health care and outdoor tourism, and the Iron Range to its north has a long mining history. St. Cloud, Mankato and smaller cities serve wide agricultural regions, and agriculture and food processing remain central to the state’s economy.
Schools, colleges and who goes where
Minnesota is known for strong public schools and was an early leader in school choice options such as charter schools and taking college courses during high school. There are also independent and religious schools, especially in the metro. Higher education includes a public university system with a flagship research campus and several regional campuses, a separate system of state universities and community and technical colleges across the state, and many private colleges.
Many Minnesota students stay in state or cross into neighboring states, and others head to the coasts. Students from the Dakotas, Wisconsin and beyond come in. Whichever direction a student goes, the first year away is where good habits are tested.
Who we work with here
High school students and their parents
Teenagers who are bright but disorganized, who are taking college-level courses and feeling the load, or who have no clear idea what comes after graduation. A parent can join the intro call and receive regular progress updates. See mentoring for high school students.
College students
Students at a big campus who feel anonymous, students at a small college far from home, and students who came back after a rough semester. Read about mentoring for college students.
Young adults and professionals
People in their twenties starting careers in the Twin Cities or Rochester, those living at home and unsure of a direction, and professionals who want accountability for a career change. See young adult mentoring.
What sessions look like
- Take a short assessment. Tell us about the student or yourself and the goals. It takes about five minutes.
- Have a free intro call. Our team reviews it personally and sets up a short call.
- Meet the mentor. We match each person with a mentor whose experience and style fit.
- Start the plan. 60 minute video sessions, scheduled in your local time.
Because Minnesota is two hours ahead of Los Angeles, a 4 pm session is 2 pm for the mentor and evening slots are easy to schedule. Full details are on our online mentoring page and on mentoring for families.
Pages for areas in Minnesota
Nearby: Madison, Des Moines and Sioux Falls. All states are listed under mentoring by state.
Starting out in Minnesota, season by season
Minnesota childhoods are often organized around the rink and the lake. Youth and high school hockey can claim winter evenings and weekends, the state tournament is a genuine event, and summers mean weekends at a cabin up north, camp jobs or work at a resort. Metro suburbs such as Edina, Eden Prairie, Woodbury and Maple Grove tend to have busy, high-achieving schools, while families in greater Minnesota may drive long distances for activities.
Many Minnesota high schoolers take college courses for free through Postsecondary Enrollment Options, known as PSEO, sometimes spending much of junior and senior year on a college campus; its rules change, so check the official state site before counting on it. Minnesota also has long-standing tuition reciprocity with neighboring states, which widens the choices for students near a border. For young adults, the Twin Cities offer many corporate and health care starting jobs, though rents near the core push plenty of people to roommates or a stretch back at home.
Situations Minnesota families and young adults often navigate
- A sixteen-year-old in PSEO who has adult-level freedom on campus and nobody tracking deadlines.
- A hockey player whose season leaves almost no room for schoolwork, sleep or a plan beyond graduation.
- A student from a small town in the south or west adjusting to life in Minneapolis or St. Paul.
- A young adult in a first corporate job who feels lost in a large organization.
- A graduate living at home after college and unsure how to restart momentum through a long winter.
Minnesota is on Central time statewide, and sessions are held by video in that local time, with in-person meetings available only in Los Angeles. Two guides that fit here are earning college credit in high school and regional tuition discounts. See Minneapolis for the metro, and education by state for comparisons.
Related
- Online mentoring in Michigan
- Online mentoring in Madison
- Homesick college freshmen
- How to build a daily routine
- State education rules: graduation, dual enrollment and scholarships
- State merit scholarships explained
- High school graduation requirements
Common questions
Are Minnesota sessions in Central time?
Yes. All of Minnesota is on Central time, and sessions are scheduled in your local time even though our team is in Los Angeles.
Can a mentor help a high schooler taking college courses?
Yes, with the planning side: managing deadlines, balancing two calendars and building study routines. Mentors are not tutors and do not teach course content.
What if winter weather or travel disrupts the week?
Sessions are online, so they continue from home, a dorm or a trip. If a session needs to move, the mentor reschedules and keeps in touch by text or phone.
Get started
Thinking about a mentor for someone in Minnesota? 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 .
Free, by video, 20 minutes, with a member of our team. Weekdays 9 to 5 Pacific.