Beruflich Dokumente
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A Horizontal Network
People connected to each other in face-to-
A Vertical Network face events, or on Facebook, Twitter, etc, who
share a common interest (sports, art), or a
People working together or collectively to
common background (family, college,
achieve a shared goal over a period of time
business), etc. are in a horizontal network.
are in a vertical network. Certain actions,
People representing goals of vertical
repeated over and over, by many people, networks are part of horizontal networks, too.
are needed to achieve the shared purpose.
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Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present); Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present), http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
Collective Effort
Our aim is to reduce the costs of poverty by helping more youth in high
poverty areas move through school and into careers. This takes 20-25
years for EACH youth.
This essay shares ideas about vertical and horizontal networks. It also shares
Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC ideas about what cities and states accomplish when
leaders and citizens are working collectively toward shared goals that we
cannot achieve when working alone. It is based on Daniel F. Bassill's personal
experiences leading a two youth tutor/mentor programs in Chicago from 1975 to
2011, and leading the Tutor/Mentor Connection from 1993 to present time.
Daniel F. Bassill How many times can you find Dan in the above collection of photos?
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Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present); Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present), http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
a Horizontal Network
The unifying factor is an event, a meeting place, a
common interest, such as in art, technology, social
entrepreneurship.
People who host and join such networks are interested in the topic and using
the ideas and people they meet to make a better world. The organizers connects
people in their network with each other.
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Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present); Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present), http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
This is an example of a horizontal network –
people from all over the world connected via a
single January 2012 event.
http://jellyweek.tumblr.com/
However, the work each group did during this event was not related to a single long-
term goal, such as clean water, ending hunger, educating kids, etc. Events like this are
important. Facebook and Twitter are huge horizontal networks because they connect
millions of people in on-going interactions.
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Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present); Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present), http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
People who meet weekly in Chicago at
#ChiHackNight and share ideas about
using civic technology are an example of
a horizontal network, in that there is no
single unifying long-term goal, other than
constant expansion in ways that civic
technology is used to benefit
communities. Supported by
http://www.chihacknight.org
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Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present); Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present), http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
This is a map showing groups that have participated in Drop-Out Prevention
Conferences in Chicago. It connects to other maps of youth-support networks.
http://tinyurl.com/2011DropoutConf-Network
While they are connected in learning events, most represent different organizations
which compete for attention and resources. Thus, they are a horizontal network
when they attend these events.
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Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present); Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present), http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
Major events, like National Conference on Volunteering and Service gather 4,000
to 6,000 participants in same place for one or two days. While the conference goal
may be to raise visibility and public funding for volunteerism in general, the
participants represent many different programs in different parts of the country.
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Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present); Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present), http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
Why is this Important?
Without the collective efforts of many people most
complex problems will not have enough on-going
commitment and flow of resources to be solved.
We have a tremendous potential to pull members from
horizontal networks into networks focused on specific
purposes.
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Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present); Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present), http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
VERTICAL NETWORKS ARE LINEAR
This graphic illustrates a long term goal
that requires the involvement of many
people in many places.
The role of intermediaries, and leaders in a Vertical
Organization is to draw people together and focus
them on day-to-day actions that must repeat in many
places for many years.
School-Time Programs
High Career
Pre-K K - 5th 5th - 6th 6th - 8th
School Track
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Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present); Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present), http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
Geographic maps can focus members on all parts of a region where same
problem exists, and where similar services are needed. In Vertical Network
all actions of members and leadership should aim to drive resources and ideas to
all of the organizations needed in accomplishing the goals of the network.
Vol
$$
What makes the Tutor/Mentor Connection/Institute, LLC unique is its focus on drawing needed
ideas and resources directly to youth tutor/mentor programs in all high poverty areas of Chicago.
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Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present); Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present), http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
It takes a core group of dedicated
leaders with a long-term vision and
commitment to make this happen.
Read about collective impact and the STRIVE program in Cincinnati in
this Stanford Social Innovation Review article -
http://www.ssireview.org/articles/entry/collective_impact
“If young people are connected with caring adults for sustained periods of
time, year-round, positive results do emerge.” See Quantum Opportunities
https://web.archive.org/web/20101228151550/http://www.aypf.org/publications/compendium/C1S37.pdf
“I'm now connected to many youth who were part of tutor/mentor programs I
led as many as 30 or 40 years ago and see them posting stories on
Facebook about their own kids finishing high school and college. That's
what we hoped would happen.” Daniel F. Bassill, Tutor/Mentor Institute,
LLC
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Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present); Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present), http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
When leaders are documenting actions toward long-term goals in systems that
aggregate this information, we’ll have better accountability, and better results.
This 2002 PDF report summarizes data collected from 2000 to 2002. It shows the type of data that
was collected by the Tutor/Mentor Connection documentation platform built in 2008.
http://www.tutormentorexchange.net/images/PDF/tmc_ohats_report_sep-00_thru_mar-02.pdf
Students in schools, non-school programs, colleges can create these visualizations. See examples at
http://www.tutormentorexchange.net/definition-of-issues/ideasanimation
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A youth’s network and the people in it can make a difference in the journey from
birth to work. Creating such networks for youth living in high poverty is the role of
vertical networks such as the Tutor/Mentor Connection.
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Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present); Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present), http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
Imagine if each leader were mapping his own network
and leading actions that grow it from year-to-year.
Daniel F. Bassill
Each of these draws people together to learn from each other. They offer
tremendous value to participants. However, there is no clear focus on
achieving a specific goal. There are many goals, represented by each of
the participants in these forums.
“I'd like to draw a difference between horizontal and vertical learning organizations.
I believe that at present, most on-line learning and networking web sites are horizontal
organizations. They collect lots of people who have a common interest, such as in
technology, or politics, etc. and enable people to share ideas in a variety of formats.
They are great for networking and exchanging ideas. However, most of the participants
represent organizations with different missions and focus areas. The host of a horizontal
learning organization is not the CEO of a business intended to accomplish a specific
result as an outcome of a sequence of eConferences...unless it's a generic result, such
as better uses of technology, or better understanding of a problem.
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Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present); Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present), http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
Additional Reading
These articles show how youth, volunteers and others in
Chicago and in other cities can help collect information,
build public attention, and educate volunteer, donors and
public leaders.
Network Building -
http://tinyurl.com/TMI-Be-Difference-Maker
Information Collection -
http://tinyurl.com/TMI-InformationGathering
Communications and PR -
http://tinyurl.com/TMI-RestOfStoryInterns
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Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present); Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present), http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
Dig into Tutor/Mentor Library
http://www.tutormentorexchange.net
http://tutormentor.blogspot.com
Daniel F. Bassill
D.H.L. http://mappingforjustice.blogspot.com
Founder, Leader
Email: tutormentor2@earthlink.net