Social Impact & Volunteering

This January, Join Mentor, the Unifying Champion of the Mentoring Movement, in Celebrating National Mentoring Month

Dec 30, 2021 2:00 PM ET
Three teenage girls laughing with the words Amplify Mentoring and National Mentoring Month 2022

BOSTON, December 30, 2021 /3BL Media/ - January is National Mentoring Month, a time for Americans to celebrate the power of relationships to drive meaningful change and call for the expansion of quality mentoring opportunities for our young people.

The past few years have brought and exacerbated many challenges, placing an unprecedented strain on the well-being of young people and disproportionately impacting children of color. With the declaration of a national emergency on children’s mental health by three national health organizations, it is the responsibility of adults to respond with urgency. Becoming a mentor and contributing to a mentoring organization are meaningful ways to do so and strengthen our civic fabric.

“Mentoring relationships have the power to open hearts, minds, and doors. Now more than ever, our young people need us to step up and step into the role of mentor to address increased isolation and walk alongside them in their journey. Every individual has the power to make an impact, and it’s one that will positively impact your life as well,” said David Shapiro, CEO of MENTOR.

According to research, when young people have a mentor, they are:

  • 52% less likely than their peers to skip a day of school.
  • 55% more likely to be enrolled in college.
  • 81% more likely to report participating regularly in sports or extracurricular activities.
  • 78% more likely to volunteer regularly in their communities.

But that same research indicates that one in three young people in our country are growing up without a mentor outside their family. This National Mentoring Month, MENTOR and the mentoring movement are reaching out to all Americans to help close that gap by encouraging adults to volunteers as mentors and contribute to a mentoring organization. To find a program in your area that interests you, go to the Mentoring Connector, the only national database of mentoring programs. Every year, more than 60,000 volunteers search the more than 3,000 programs in the connector to start their mentoring journey. Take action and join the growing mentoring movement today.

ABOUT MENTOR

MENTOR is the unifying champion for expanding the quality and quantity of mentoring relationships across the United States. 30 years ago, MENTOR was created to expand opportunities for young people by building a youth mentoring field and movement. The result: a more than 10-fold increase in young people in structured mentoring relationships. Today, MENTOR is the expert voice representing a movement that meets young people everywhere they are – from schools, to workplaces and beyond. MENTOR operates in collaboration with 24 local Affiliates across the country. For more information, visit mentoring.org.

Contact:

Krista Mason, MENTOR, kmason@mentoring.org

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