Blackburn Mentoring works with families on Chicago’s North Shore by video. Students and young adults in Winnetka, Glencoe, Wilmette, Kenilworth, Highland Park and Lake Forest can meet one dedicated mentor online, weekly or several times a week, with sessions scheduled in Central time and text and phone check-ins in between. Our team is based in Los Angeles, so nothing here happens in person.
The North Shore setting
The suburbs along Lake Michigan north of Evanston are close-knit, leafy and full of families who chose them for the schools. Many parents commute downtown on the Metra Union Pacific North line, and family calendars fill with travel sports, music, tutoring and summer travel.
In communities this tight, kids can feel watched. Everyone knows whose son made varsity and whose daughter is applying where. For a teenager who is struggling, that can make it harder to ask for help from anyone local. A mentor who lives outside the social circle can be easier to talk to.
Chicago North Shore by the numbers
Two kinds of figures appear here. Township-level figures cover the lakefront township that includes Winnetka, Kenilworth, Glencoe and most of Wilmette; county-level figures cover Lake County, which takes in Highland Park, Lake Forest and Lake Bluff. All come from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, via Census Reporter.
- 84.7% of adults 25 and older in the township hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, and the median household income is $215,916 (township level, American Community Survey 2024 5-year). In Lake County the bachelor’s share is 49.1% and the median income is $107,758 (county level, American Community Survey 2024 1-year). When nearly every parent on the block has a degree, a teen can feel that only one path counts, and a mentor helps them see more than one.
- The mean travel time to work in the township is 34.2 minutes (township level, American Community Survey 2024 5-year), longer than Lake County’s 28.8 minutes (county level, 2024 1-year). Many parents are on a train until 6:30 or 7, which is exactly when an after-school plan tends to fall apart.
- The median age in the township is 44.5 (township level, American Community Survey 2024 5-year): a community of established families with teenagers and college students, not young renters.
- 35.1% of Illinois adults ages 18 to 34 live with their parents, above the national 32.9% (state level, 2024 American Community Survey as compiled by FinanceBuzz). Graduates moving home between college and a first city apartment is common, and it goes better with a plan.
Session times from the North Shore
The North Shore is two hours ahead of Los Angeles, and every session is booked in Central time.
- After school: 4:00 pm in Winnetka is 2:00 pm for the mentor, and 5:30 pm after practice is 3:30 pm Pacific.
- After work: a 7:00 pm session, after the train home, is 5:00 pm Pacific; 8:00 pm Central is 6:00 pm Pacific.
- Early-morning sessions before school or the 7 am train, and weekend sessions, are available on request.
What families on the North Shore often want help with
- Follow-through. A bright student whose grades slip because assignments start at 10 pm. Our guide on teen procrastination explains why.
- Ownership. A teen who has had a lot managed for them and needs to start managing it themselves before college. See how much independence a teenager needs.
- A reset after a hard start. A college student who came home in December or May with a semester that did not go as planned; college transition mentoring covers that year.
- Launch. A graduate back in the family home, working on a job search in the Loop or deciding whether to move to another city.
The North Shore year
Local districts set their own calendars, typically starting in mid to late August, and winter break runs from late December into early January. From November to March, days are short, gray and windy off the lake, and motivation often dips with them, especially in January after the holidays. Mentors plan for that season on purpose: a fixed wake-up time, a workout that does not depend on the weather, and smaller weekly targets that keep momentum through the hardest months. Many families travel over spring break, and video sessions continue from wherever they are.
Summers revolve around the lake, overnight camps in Wisconsin and Michigan, sailing programs and club jobs. Caddying, lifeguarding and camp counseling are classic first jobs for teens in Northbrook, Glenview and Lake Bluff. Plenty of parents run family businesses or work in finance, law and corporate management in the Loop, which brings both opportunity and expectations about what a young person should do next. After college, the typical next step is a first apartment in Lincoln Park, Lakeview or the West Loop, close to home in miles but in an entirely different routine.
Situations North Shore families run into
- A teen who has caddied or worked at camp every summer and is ready for something different, but has no plan for the next one.
- A young adult expected to join the family business who wants to try working somewhere else first; see working outside the family business first.
- A recent graduate in the West Loop struggling with long hours, city expenses and a new social life.
Where a mentor helps
A mentor is not a tutor, therapist or admissions counselor. The role is practical: weekly goals, honest accountability and one adult who stays steady. For teenagers, see mentoring for high school students. Families in the city and other suburbs can read about online mentoring in Chicago and Naperville and DuPage County, and families just over the Wisconsin line can see Milwaukee. The online mentoring page explains video sessions, and mentoring in Illinois covers the rest of the state.
Common questions
Do North Shore families use video mentoring?
Yes. Every North Shore client meets their mentor by video, with text and phone contact between sessions. The only place we meet clients face to face is Los Angeles, where our team works.
Can a mentor help a student under heavy academic pressure?
Yes. A mentor helps the student decide what matters most, plan the week and protect sleep, so the pressure becomes a set of choices rather than a weight. If stress turns into lasting anxiety or low mood, a licensed professional is the right step, and a mentor can work alongside one.
Can sessions fit around train commutes and after-school activities?
Yes. Sessions are booked in Central time, so a 7:00 pm slot after the train home or a 4:00 pm slot before practice are both easy to find. The time can move when a season or a work week changes.
Can sessions continue over the summer?
Yes. Sessions are online, so they continue from a lake house, a summer job or a trip, as long as there is a quiet spot and a connection.
Can parents get updates when needed?
Yes. For high school students, a parent can join the intro call and help set the goals, and the mentor shares progress when needed. College students and young adults decide with their mentor what is shared.
Get started
Want to talk about a student or young adult on the North Shore? 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.
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Free, by video, 20 minutes, with a member of our team. Weekdays 9 to 5 Pacific.