[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 15 (Thursday, January 29, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S660-S661]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




SENATE RESOLUTION 58--RECOGNIZING JANUARY 2015 AS ``NATIONAL MENTORING 
                                MONTH''

  Mr. ISAKSON (for himself, Mr. Whitehouse, Mrs. Capito, and Mr. Brown) 
submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                               S. Res. 58

       Whereas in 2002, the Harvard 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 serve as 
     mentors, and encourage organizations to engage and integrate 
     quality in mentoring into their efforts;
       Whereas a mentor is a caring, consistent presence who 
     devotes time to a young person to help that 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 and 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 a mentor 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, and 
     78 percent more likely to volunteer regularly in their 
     communities than young people who were at risk for not 
     completing high school and who did not have a mentor;
       Whereas youth development experts agree that mentoring is 
     critical to the social, emotional, and cognitive development 
     of youth, helping them navigate the path to adulthood more 
     successfully;
       Whereas mentors help young people set career goals and use 
     their personal contacts to help young people meet industry 
     professionals and find jobs;

[[Page S661]]

       Whereas mentoring is a proven cost-effective investment: 
     for every dollar invested in mentoring, there is a 3-dollar 
     return to society;
       Whereas all of the above-listed benefits serve to link 
     youth to economic opportunity while also strengthening the 
     fiber of our communities; and
       Whereas despite these benefits, 1 in 3 youth will reach age 
     19 without a mentor, constituting a ``mentoring gap'' that 
     demonstrates a need for collaboration and resources: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) recognizes January 2015 as ``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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