Editorial overview: mentoring for individualized growth in schools and universities

This is my third issue of Mentoring and Tutoring: Partnership in Learning journal, and I am not certain that I have been properly introduced. I am Nathan (Nate) Templeton and I bring a wealth of experience in academia, most recently serving a long stint as editor of the International Journal of Educational Leadership Preparation (IJELP). I am excited to assume the helm of this prestigious journal, having been mentored through the years by Dr. Beverly Irby. As with Dr. Carol Mullen before her, my being named editor is an exciting step in the mentoring process between Dr. Irby and myself. We teach in the same system, serve within the same community of practice group, and fulfill academic responsibilities in a myriad of common ways. Even so, the greatest impact from Beverly has been the patient nurturing and mentoring over the past year, as she instilled in me the mission of this great journal to mentor both earlyand latecareer members of the academy to develop and grow personally and professionally. Thank you, Beverly for the investment of time and effort to teach, model, and challenge. This issue of Mentoring & Tutoring: Partnership in Learning Journal includes scholars from Jordan, Israel, India, and the northeastern and southeastern areas of the United States. These international contributors explore mentoring as a process for individualized growth in schools and universities. Garbey, Garvey, Stokes, and Meddinson (2017) described mentoring as a phenomenon embedded in human and cultural interactions which ultimately frame the foundation for individual and organizational growth. Similarly, Brondyk and Searby (2013) articulated the complexities of best practices in the field of mentoring, and while the authors confirmed some ambiguity with the term best practice, the benefits of mentoring and the prevalence of a mentoring mindset have proven to be impactful for improving professional growth through effective mentoring practices (Irby et al., 2020; Mullen, 2012). Most notably, this issue examines different types of mentoring programs and practices and the manner in which each enriches learning and individualized growth in schools and universities. Specifically, mentoring approaches are situated in the narratives of continuous learning, relationship building, and in the case of adolescents, identity development through natural mentors. For clarity, a natural mentor is one who naturally connects with a mentee, rather MENTORING & TUTORING: PARTNERSHIP IN LEARNING 2021, VOL. 29, NO. 3, 257–260 https://doi.org/10.1080/13611267.2021.1935772