“Mentoring is a brain to pick, an ear to listen, and a push in the right direction.”
— John Crosby
In an effort to reach out to youth and involve them in the issue of missing persons and volunteerism, CUE Center for Missing Persons initiated internship and mentoring programs for high school and college students.
The Senior High School Mentoring Program provides mentoring to local area high schools by way of sponsoring students in their senior year on missing person related projects and half of the semester grade. Open High Schools for participation began in 1999 listing New Hanover, Brunswick and Pender Counties in North Carolina. To date (2020) the organization has mentored 41 projects for senior High School students.
The Senior College Internship Program was established in 1998 and to date (2020) has processed 77 senior students providing anywhere from 25 to 150 hours each to the organization with credited volunteer service hours. Many colleges in North Carolina are enrolled with CUE for this program. Leading areas of studies are creative writing, criminal justice, social work, and marketing.
Students are incorporated in roadside rallies, family vigils, as well as reviewing and validating incoming information. They also have the opportunity to learn about case management and search organization.
Students have provided approximately 10,000 hours of volunteerism to the organization.
Mary Bethea, current Vice President of the Board of Directors, was a struggling student without a purpose. Under the direction of Monica Caison, she entered the Senior College Internship Program and found her course for the next several years. Additionally, Mary obtained her AWDA-K9 working dog certification and participated in searches.
“CUE has done so much more for me than I have done for them.” Mary Bethea
Mary’s career choice was to become a private investigator and she credits her experiences in the mentoring program with CUE Center as the influence for her decision. She honed her skills by working a case from the onset, assisted in locating the victim and supporting the family. She fully grasped the importance of CUE’s mission by attending the funeral of the victim where she was recognized with gratitude from the family.
For a complete look at CUE’s training and educational programs, please visit this page on our website: https://ncmissingpersons.org/programs/