Johnson Employee Resource Groups Host Annual Employee Mentoring 2023 Event
At NASA’s Johnson Space Center, the Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) are dedicated to fostering professional development, enhancing work performance, providing networking and mentoring opportunities, increasing community partnerships, and encouraging interaction and relationship building across the center.
In October 2023, Janette Garcia, networking lead of the Women Excelling in Leadership and Life (WELL) ERG, organized the Annual Employee Mentoring 2023 event in collaboration with Melissa McGuire from JSC Parenting and Lissette Chavez from the No Boundaries (NoBo) ERGs. This informal mentoring event comprised 50-minute sessions where early and mid-career civil servants and contractors had the opportunity to connect with seasoned professionals in small-group discussions covering various topics, including:
- Career development and self-improvement
- Parenting
- Work/life balance
- Program/project management
- Communication and soft skills
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“Throughout my life, I have had exceptional mentors who have positively impacted my professional development. Those mentorship experiences have inspired me to create networking and mentoring opportunities for both civil servants and contractors,” said Garcia. “I love that these events allow for a wider range of participation, accommodating those who can attend in person and those who may be teleworking.” Since 2020, Garcia has organized virtual informal mentoring events in collaboration with other WELL colleagues. This was her first time organizing a hybrid mentoring event with two other ERG representatives.
The main goal of the mentoring event, as expressed by Garcia, was to provide a platform for early to mid-career professionals to gain insights, advice, and guidance from subject matter experts. “Seasoned professionals have the opportunity to share their wealth of experience and knowledge with the younger generation, thus fostering a culture of continuous learning and development within Johnson,” said Garcia. “Special thanks to our opening remarks and keynote speakers, collaborators, moderator, and mentors for their contributions to event success. Thanks to the mentees for taking advantage of this opportunity designed with you in mind.”
Credit: NASA/Eric Chaidez
A total of 107 early and mid-career civil servants and contractors met with their assigned mentors in groups of four to five to learn from their mentors’ experiences and establish meaningful connections. Twenty-five mentors from across Johnson and the NASA Alumni League generously shared their knowledge and wisdom with their respective groups of mentees.
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The Annual Employee Mentoring 2023 event was set in motion with opening remarks by Anne Roemer, Johnson's director of Human Resources, and an inspiring keynote by Ashley White, program manager of the Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity. Ashley Owens, WELL membership secretary, served as the moderator, introducing the speakers, engaging the audience, and ensuring the smooth flow of the event.
