III 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 485 

Recognizing January 2020 as ‘‘National Mentoring Month’’. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 28, 2020 

Mr. WHITEHOUSE (for himself, Mr. BLUNT, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. BOOKER, 

Mr. BOOZMAN, Mr. BRAUN, Mr. BROWN, Mrs. CAPITO, Mr. CORNYN, Ms. 

DUCKWORTH, Mr. DURBIN, Ms. ERNST, Mr. HAWLEY, Mr. JONES, Ms. 

KLOBUCHAR, Mr. LANKFORD, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. PERDUE, 

Mr. PETERS, Mr. REED, Ms. ROSEN, Mr. SANDERS, Ms. SMITH, Mr. 

SULLIVAN, Ms. WARREN, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. LEAHY, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, 

and Mr. BARRASSO) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

RESOLUTION 

Recognizing January 2020 as ‘‘National Mentoring Month’’. 

Whereas the goals of National Mentoring Month are to raise 

awareness of mentoring, recruit individuals to mentor, 

celebrate the powerful impact of caring adults who volunteer time for the benefit of young people, and encourage 

organizations to engage and integrate quality in mentoring into the efforts of the organizations; 

Whereas there are young people across the United States who 

make everyday choices that lead to the big decisions in 

life without the guidance and support on which many 

other young people rely; 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
2 

•SRES 485 IS 

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 the potential of 

that young person; 

Whereas quality mentoring encourages positive life and social 

skills, promotes self-esteem, bolsters academic achievement and college access, supports career exploration, and 

nurtures youth leadership development; 

Whereas mentoring happens in various settings, including 

community-based programs, elementary and secondary 

schools, colleges, government agencies, religious institutions, and the workplace, and in various ways, including 

formal mentoring matches and informal relationships 

with teachers, coaches, neighbors, faith leaders, and others; 

Whereas mentoring programs have been shown to be effective 

in helping young people make positive choices; 

Whereas studies have shown that incorporating culture and 

heritage into mentoring programs can improve academic 

outcomes and increases community engagement, especially for Alaskan Native and American Indian youth; 

Whereas young people who meet regularly with mentors are 

46 percent less likely than peers to start using illegal 

drugs; 

Whereas research shows that young people who were at risk 

for not completing high school but who had a mentor 

were, as compared with similarly situated young people 

without a mentor— 

(1) 55 percent more likely to be enrolled in college; 

(2) 81 percent more likely to report participating 

regularly in sports or extracurricular activities; 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
3 

•SRES 485 IS 

(3) more than twice as likely to say they held a leadership position in a club or sports team; and 

(4) 78 percent more likely to pay it forward by volunteering regularly in the communities of young people; 

Whereas students who are chronically absent are more likely 

to fall behind academically, and mentoring can play a 

role in helping young people attend school regularly, as 

research shows that students who meet regularly with a 

mentor are, as compared with the peers of those students— 

(1) 52 percent less likely to skip a full day of school; 

and 

(2) 37 percent less likely to skip a class; 

Whereas youth development experts agree that mentoring encourages positive youth development and smart daily behaviors, such as finishing homework and having healthy 

social interactions, and has a positive impact on the 

growth and success of a young person; 

Whereas mentors help young people set career goals and use 

the personal contacts of the mentors to help young people 

meet industry professionals and train for and find jobs; 

Whereas each of the benefits of mentors described in this preamble serves to link youth to economic and social opportunity while also strengthening communities in the 

United States; and 

Whereas, despite those described benefits, an estimated 

9,000,000 young people in the United States feel isolated 

from meaningful connections with adults outside the 

home, constituting a ‘‘mentoring gap’’ that demonstrates 

a need for collaboration and resources: Now, therefore, be 

it 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
4 

•SRES 485 IS 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) recognizes January 2020 as ‘‘National Men3 toring Month’’; 

4 (2) recognizes the caring adults who serve as 

5 staff and volunteers at quality mentoring programs 

6 and help the young people of the United States find 

7 inner strength and reach their full potential; 

8 (3) acknowledges that mentoring is beneficial 

9 because mentoring supports educational achievement 

10 and self-confidence, supports young people in setting 

11 career goals and expanding social capital, reduces 

12 juvenile delinquency, improves positive personal, pro13 fessional, and academic outcomes, and strengthens 

14 communities; 

15 (4) promotes the establishment and expansion 

16 of quality mentoring programs across the United 

17 States to equip young people with the tools needed 

18 to lead healthy and productive lives; and 

19 (5) supports initiatives to close the ‘‘mentoring 

20 gap’’ that exists for the many young people in the 

21 United States who do not have meaningful connec22 tions with adults outside the home. 

Æ 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS