Codi Renee Blackmon presented “The Power of Connection in Mentoring Networks” on the panel “Microstories, Mentoring, and Teaching Technical Communication” at the hybrid 2026 Association of Teachers of Technical Writing conference (ATTW), held April 17–18.

Blackmon’s talk centered on how collective, cross-institutional mentoring can offer a more relational and sustaining alternative to traditional mentorship. Drawing on microstories, Blackmon shows how small moments of sharing can build trust, belonging, collaboration, and well-being across different career stages and professional roles in technical communication. Her presentation offered ATTW attendees a practical, humane model for rethinking mentorship as relational, sustaining, and central to the field’s infrastructure.