Introducing the Barista Guild of America Mentorship Program
By Brent Hall
The Barista Guild of America (BGA) members are constantly striving for growth and your BGA leadership is always wanting to meet their members' demands. BGA members are growing in size, skill sets, regions, and more. With that growth has come a tide of new baristas looking for ways to increase their knowledge and grow within the industry. The BGA wants to provide a program to help baristas in need of a resource to make the leap from Barista Level 1 to Level 2. We are introducing the first-ever mentorship program and offering it to baristas who are working to get to their Level 2 Certificate. The program mentors will be a group of people who you can call on to help you work through the process of obtaining your Level 2 Certificate.
Here is the 30,000-foot view:
Description of the program: The mentoring program will provide an in road for BGA Level 2 Candidates who are at the brink of certification, have recently received their Level 1 Certificate, or have paused their course work to receive Level 2 Certification. Members of the Barista Pathways and Membership committees will pair up to provide guidance to groups of 3-4 candidates on the path to Level 2 Certificates.
Timeline: October 2016 - April 2017 (Post-Camp to Expo)
Purpose: To provide guidance and assessment for BGA Level 1 Certified Baristas on the path to their Level 2 Certification.
Objective:
- Increase the success rate of Level 2 Certifications to 100%.
- Retain Level 2 Baristas as instructors for Level 1 and Level 2 classes.
Criteria to be mentored:
- Must have at least your Level 1 Barista Pathway Certificate.
- Can commit to signing up for CP201, 202, 203, and 204 in the next year.
- Can participate in two one-hour-long phone calls per month with your mentors and your peers.
- Must be a member in good standing.
Our program mentors pairs include:
- Miguel Vicuna, Sam Brown and David Fasman
- Zoey Thorson and Todd Mackey
- Tyler Duncan and Sarah Leslie
- Lorenzo Perkins and Trevor Corlett
Registration is now open. Please fill out and submit the following questionnaire by Friday September 9, 2016. You will be notified of your status by Friday, September 16, 2016. We are looking forward to helping you on your pathway to your Level 2 certificate. Please reach out to mchokshi@scaa.org or brenthall82@gmail.com if you have any questions about the program before registering.