[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 599 Introduced in House (IH)]

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114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 599

Recognizing January 2016 as ``National Mentoring Month'', and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            February 2, 2016

Ms. Wilson of Florida (for herself, Ms. Adams, Mr. Cardenas, Mr. Carson 
  of Indiana, Ms. Clark of Massachusetts, Ms. Clarke of New York, Mr. 
 Conyers, Mr. Danny K. Davis of Illinois, Mr. DeSaulnier, Mr. Fattah, 
  Ms. Fudge, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Honda, Ms. Jackson Lee, Mr. Larsen of 
Washington, Ms. Lee, Ms. Norton, Mr. Pocan, Mr. Rangel, Mr. Schiff, and 
Mr. Van Hollen) submitted the following resolution; which was referred 
            to the Committee on Education and the Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Recognizing January 2016 as ``National Mentoring Month'', and for other 
                               purposes.

Whereas in 2002, the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and MENTOR: the 
        National Mentoring Partnership created National Mentoring Month;
Whereas the goals of National Mentoring Month are to raise awareness of 
        mentoring, recruit individuals to mentor, and encourage organizations to 
        engage and integrate quality mentoring into their efforts;
Whereas young people across the Nation make everyday choices that lead up to 
        life's big decisions without sufficient guidance and support;
Whereas a mentor is a caring, consistent presence who devotes time to help a 
        young person discover personal strength and achieve his or her potential 
        through a structured and trusting relationship;
Whereas quality mentoring encourages positive choices, promotes self-esteem, 
        supports academic achievement, and introduces young people to new ideas;
Whereas mentoring programs have been shown to be effective in combating school 
        violence, discipline problems, substance abuse, incarceration, and 
        truancy;
Whereas research shows that young people who were at risk for not completing 
        high school but who had mentors were 55 percent more likely to be 
        enrolled in college, 81 percent more likely to report participating 
        regularly in sports or extracurricular activities, more than twice as 
        likely to say they held a leadership position in a club or sports team, 
        78 percent more likely to pay it forward by volunteering regularly in 
        their communities, and that 90 percent are now interested in becoming 
        mentors themselves;
Whereas youth development experts agree that mentoring encourages smart daily 
        behaviors such as finishing homework, having healthy social 
        interactions, saying no when it counts, and has a noticeable influence 
        on a young person's growth and success;
Whereas mentors prepare young people for professional careers by helping them 
        set career goals, introducing them to industry professionals, and 
        helping them find jobs;
Whereas mentoring relationships are a shared opportunity for learning and 
        growth, changing both the mentor and the mentee;
Whereas mentoring relationships have enabled mentors to improve their self-
        esteem and achieve personal growth, develop a greater appreciation for 
        diversity, promote productivity and boost their attitude at work, and 
        enhance their own relationships;
Whereas all of the above listed benefits link youth to economic and social 
        opportunity while also strengthening the fiber of our communities; and
Whereas despite these benefits, 9 million young people in the United States feel 
        isolated from meaningful connections with adults outside their homes, 
        constituting a ``mentoring gap'' that demonstrates a need for 
        collaboration and resources: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes National Mentoring Month;
            (2) recognizes the men and women who serve as staff and 
        volunteers at quality mentoring programs and who help our young 
        people find inner strength and reach their full potential;
            (3) acknowledges that mentoring is beneficial because it 
        encourages educational achievement, reduces juvenile 
        delinquency, improves life outcomes, and strengthens 
        communities;
            (4) promotes the creation and expansion of quality 
        mentoring programs across the country to equip young people 
        with the tools needed to lead healthy and productive lives; and
            (5) supports initiatives to close the ``mentoring gap''.
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