Title: A resolution recognizing January 2020 as "National Mentoring Month".
Policy area: Education

Summary:
This resolution recognizes (1) January 2020 as National Mentoring Month, and (2) the staff and volunteers at quality mentoring programs who help young people reach their full potential.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 485 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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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;
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;

    (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
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) recognizes January 2020 as ``National Mentoring 
        Month'';
            (2) recognizes the caring adults who serve as staff and 
        volunteers at quality mentoring programs and help the young 
        people of the United States find inner strength and reach their 
        full potential;
            (3) acknowledges that mentoring is beneficial because 
        mentoring supports educational achievement and self-confidence, 
        supports young people in setting career goals and expanding 
        social capital, reduces juvenile delinquency, improves positive 
        personal, professional, and academic outcomes, and strengthens 
        communities;
            (4) promotes the establishment and expansion of quality 
        mentoring programs across the United States to equip young 
        people with the tools needed to lead healthy and productive 
        lives; and
            (5) supports initiatives to close the ``mentoring gap'' 
        that exists for the many young people in the United States who 
        do not have meaningful connections with adults outside the 
        home.
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