ZFive of Mecklenburg County offers licensed clinicians the opportunity to participate in the Infant and Young Child Mental Health Mentoring Program. ZFive is an informal collaborative of clinicians, researchers, and program administrators in Mecklenburg County, NC, dedicated to improving the lives of children, aged birth through five, with mental health issues and their families. The Mentoring Program was established in 2008 to increase the number of licensed clinicians in Mecklenburg County, NC, who are competent in evaluating and treating the mental health needs of children aged birth through five years via evidenced based assessments and practices. Clinicians participating in the mentoring program gain knowledge about the skills needed to work with children of this specific age and their families, as well as become acquainted with evidence based evaluations and therapeutic interventions for this population. Additionally, the Mentee practices his/her new skills with children and families, with guidance from the Mentor, via weekly mentoring sessions and monthly group mentoring meetings.

If you have questions about the Mentoring Program, please contact Laverne Fesperman, MSW, LCSW at Laverne1015@bellsouth.net. If you would like to be considered for the next cohort of mentees, please revisit this website page in the future; application materials will be posted here when the next cohort is being recruited, possibly late spring 2012.

To learn about the commitment required of an agency sponsoring a mentee, please click here.

If you would like to view a sample Letter of Agreement between the Mentee and the Mentoring Program, please click here.

For an alphabetical list of individuals who have completed the Mentoring Program to date, click here.