Lessons from an association that’s building mentoring into member life, not just the member calendar.
WHY THIS CONVERSATION MATTERS
Most association mentoring programs start the same way.
A call for participants, some matching, a kickoff event. But then somewhere between month two and closing the cohort, momentum quietly fades. So the program runs, but it never really lands.
CHEST is different.
The American College of Chest Physicians knows that it should be a natural part of their member culture to have experienced clinicians guiding the next generation. And while it did happen naturally for some, they took it a step further to maximise its impact. They gave it structure, intentionality, and room to grow.
The result is a mentoring program that doesn’t just exist on their calendar. It’s woven into how CHEST supports members at pivotal moments in their careers, and all the other moments in between.
In this fireside chat, Mentorloop’s Director of Customer Growth, Marina Sancho, will be chatting with CHEST’s program coordinators, Elizabeth Stigler and Emily Petraglia, about what it took to get there.
Not as a standalone initiative, but as a deliberate part of how they support members at critical career moments.
Practical, transferable lessons for any association leader thinking about starting or scaling a mentoring program.
Senior Director, Equity & Community Impact
Elizabeth leads enterprise-wide strategy for equity, philanthropy, and community impact at CHEST, bringing a deliberate, systems-level lens. With a background spanning DEIB strategy, community partnerships, and academic instruction, she’s spent her career designing programs that embed inclusion into the fabric of organisations rather than bolting it on.
At CHEST, that thinking shapes how the mentoring program reaches and serves its most underrepresented members.
Director, Volunteer Operations
Emily has spent over a decade at CHEST building and running the volunteer programs that keep its 18,000-strong membership connected and engaged. As Director of Volunteer Operations, she oversees committees, volunteer recruitment, and the awards and designations that recognise member achievement.
As one of the coordinators behind CHEST’s mentoring program, she brings that same member-first thinking to one of the association’s most valued initiatives.
YOUR HOST
Director of Customer Growth @ Mentorloop
WHO SHOULD ATTEND
This session is for you if:
