Van Hollen Cosponsors Bipartisan Resolution Recognizing ‘National Mentoring Month’

U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) cosponsored a bipartisan Senate resolution recognizing January 2019 as “National Mentoring Month” to raise awareness of the power of mentors to help young people determine their goals and reach their full potential.  

The resolution recognizes the benefits of mentoring, as well as mentoring programs, and volunteers who serve as mentors. The resolution also highlights the positive effects of young people who have a mentor. According to MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership, these benefits include students who are:

• 46 percent less likely than their peers to start using illegal drugs,
• 55 percent more likely to be enrolled in college,
• 81 percent more likely to report participation in sports or other extracurricular activities,
• More than twice as likely to say they held a leadership position in a club or a sports team, and
• 78 percent more likely to volunteer regularly in their communities.

Further, the resolution recognizes that an estimated 9 million young people feel isolated from meaningful connections with adults outside the home, constituting a “mentoring gap” and underscoring the importance of more adults investing their time in the future of America’s youth.

The full text of the resolution can be found here.

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