Membership

The Calmentor program encourages and supports volunteer partnerships between small businesses (protégés) and larger Architectural and Engineering (A&E) firms (mentors) in order to increase the participation of small businesses on A&E transportation projects. The program is consistent with California Executive Order S-11-06, which greatly encourages increasing the participation of Small Business (SB) , Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise (DVBE)  and Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) certified firms in contracting with the State of California. The program is meant to foster meaningful relationships between firms, with mentors offering protégés education, training, and networking opportunities.

Goals and Objectives

The goal of the Calmentor Program is to facilitate 12-month pairings between Mentors and Protégés that enhance the knowledge, qualifications, readiness, and capacity of Protégés to perform work on public transportation sector projects. It is not the goal of the Calmentor Program to provide or otherwise obtain new contracts or revenue sources for Protégés.

 

Goals are achieved through the following performance objectives:

  1. Facilitating at least three new pairings annually between Mentor and Protégés to achieve Calmentor Program SMART Goals and Development Milestones;
  2. Facilitating at least four general membership meetings annually including the Calmentor Program Annual Luncheon where educational workshops, presentations, and other information is shared to expand the knowledge and capacity of members around the public transportation contracting process and requirements;
  3. Facilitating at least four business networking sessions to foster new business contacts and pairings among Mentors, Graduate Protégés, and Protégés during Calmentor Program regular membership meetings and the Calmentor Program Annual Luncheon;
  4. Fostering relationships with regional/local public transportation agencies in the District 4 geographic region to participate in Calmentor Program general membership meetings and the annual luncheon and to share information on upcoming procurements, small business outreach events and support, and procurement process requirements; and
  5. Supporting non-certified Protégés to obtain California Micro-Business Certification.

 

Location

Calmentor Program membership meetings and other program-related activities take place at District 4 Headquarters located at 111 Grand Avenue, Oakland, California.

 

Participants

Participants of the Program are the Advocate, Steering Committee members, Public Agency Partners, Sponsors, Mentors, Protégés, and Graduate Protégés.

 

Application to the Program

The program is currently accepting new Mentor and Protégé members. For applications, please contact the program facilitator, Lupe Ramos Amith, at: Facilitator@OutsourceExecs.com or call (760) 275-1554. Your completed application will be reviewed by the Steering Committee Members and voted on during the next scheduled Steering Committee Meeting. The following are descriptions of Mentor and Protégé firms:

 

  1. Mentors: A&E prime consultant firms willing to commit time to help certified firms achieve their growth potential.
  2. Protégés: Certified firms seeking A&E contracts with Caltrans or other public agencies. If your firm is not certified and interested in being certified by the appropriate certifying agency, please go to the Small Business Program for information on the SB/DVBE or the DBE programs.