Colorado's New Online Mentorship Initiative Supports Local Public Health Agencies

August 07, 2024 | Elise Moore

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) launched their Athena Success Partnering program, an online staff mentorship initiative for local public health agencies. CDPHE's Office of Public Health Practice, Planning, and Local Partnerships (OPHP) developed the program as part of its Executive Director Learning Pathways project, which supports those leading local health agencies in Colorado—especially after many of those leaders faced intense scrutiny during the pandemic.

CDPHE used Public Health Infrastructure Grant (PHIG) funds to procure the software to support its online mentorship programs. Several different entities in CDPHE are now using the software for mentoring initiatives, including programs for new hires, human-centered leadership, and peer support. In addition to the Athena Program, OPHP uses the software for a peer connection program for Colorado Chief Medical Officers.

Development and Launch of the Mentorship Program

An Executive Director Advisory Group helped guide OPHP’s thinking around the options and elements to include in its online mentorship program for local health agencies. The Athena Program provides new and experienced executive directors and emerging leaders the opportunity to form supportive peer relationships for skill development, confidence building, networking, effective agency leadership, and supporting retention efforts. OPHP started by focusing on local public health agency executive directors and has recently opened the program to all Colorado local public health agency staff.

The program offers a series of steps or prompts to guide mentors and mentees, with content to last for a year of regular meetings. Some of the automated prompts include ice breakers and questions about communication, goal setting, and leadership. Additionally, the platform has a learning section where users can find articles and resources related to professional development.

Participants use the platform for traditional mentoring, and to connect with colleagues with expertise in specific areas. Users can ask questions or request mentorship for specific time-sensitive problems or learning needs. They can also join role-specific groups, such as planners and emergency preparedness and response and resiliency staff.

OPHP notes that it took time for staff to develop new habits for using the platform for questions and resource sharing and that some executive directors did not feel qualified enough to become mentors to other executive directors. To address some of these challenges, OPHP created resources and opportunities for users to understand the program's benefits, including a monthly newsletter. In one edition, OPHP outlined reasons to become a mentor—addressing the benefits, time investment, preparation guidance, and qualifications to be a mentor.

Program Receives Positive Response

Both mentors and mentees in the Athena Program have expressed positive outcomes and benefited from their relationships. Broomfield County Executive Director Jason Vahling shared that he benefitted from the mentor experience.

“Initially, I was signing up to be a mentor, but I feel like, at times, we switch back and forth between being the mentor and mentee and learn from each other. It has been great to have a partner outside the metro area to get insights and learn from."

Mentorship Platform Evaluation Plans

As the program continues, OPHP is using quantitative and qualitative data (e.g., participation counts, user surveys, and key informant interviews) to assess participant engagement. Program administrators are also assessing supports and barriers to participation and whether participation in the mentorship program is helping build essential knowledge and skills in implementing best practices for core public health services and foundational capabilities, management and leadership, and staff support and retention.

OPHP’s Advice on Planning an Online Mentorship Program

For health departments seeking to build their mentorship platform, OPHP shared a few tips:

• An advisory group was valuable for program planning.
• Talk to potential participants about their needs, as these may vary.
• Be patient and take the long view.
• Demonstrate how the program benefits both mentors and mentees.
• Provide various options for engaging with mentoring, peer support, and group interaction opportunities.

Future Plans for Strengthening Staff Expertise

CDPHE plans to continue leveraging PHIG funding, as well as their academic health department partnership with the Colorado School of Public Health, to offer a program to prepare participants to successfully take the Certified in Public Health (CPH) exam and earn certification with a pilot beginning in January 2025.

PHIG recipients interested in learning more about Colorado’s experience can reach out to the team at ophp@state.co.us.

Thank you to Michele Shimomura, Pamela Gould, Stefanie Winfield, Jennifer Smith, Taryn Teeples, and Paula Lee for their contributions to this blog post.