The Mentoring Partnership of New York
To be an ADVOCATE for the expansion of quality mentoring opportunities for New York City youth and a RESOURCE for mentors and mentoring initiatives citywide. Learn More
Cause Bulletin
President Obama Celebrates National Mentoring Month
January 22, 2010: President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama celebrated National Mentoring Month by emphasizing the importance of being a caring adult in the life of a child at an event held at the White House on January 20, 2010. President Obama issued a call to action for more Americans to mentor, stating tha… Read More
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MENTOR
Your donation goes to support the core mission of:
MENTOR, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit
For nearly two decades, MENTOR has worked to expand the world of quality youth mentoring. In cooperation with a strong national network of mentoring partnerships throughout the country and with more than 4,100 mentoring programs nationwide, MENTOR helps to connect young Americans who want and need caring adults in their lives with the power of mentoring.
We seek to leverage resources and provide the tools that local mentoring programs need to operate high-quality mentoring, build greater awareness of the need for mentors, and raise the profile of mentoring among corporate leaders, foundation executives, policymakers, and researchers. As such, the ultimate beneficiaries of our work are the millions of young people who are currently benefiting from the guidance of caring adult mentors.
MENTOR is committed to continued service as the national clearinghouse for best practices and national standards, tools and resources, advocacy and public opinion and collaboration with partners nationwide in pursuit of the greater good: closing the national mentoring gap ? 15 million ? so that all of America?s youth may benefit from a caring adult.
Recent Cause Activity
President Obama Celebrates National Mentoring Month
January 22, 2010: President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama celebrated National Mentoring Month by emphasizing the importance of being a caring adult in the life of a child at an event held at the White House on January 20, 2010.
President Obama issued a call to action for more Americans to mentor, stating that “…if compassionate, committed adults are willing to step up, then think about the incredible impact that we can have. Think about the potential that we will discover, and the talent that we will nurture, and the lives that we can turn around, and the effect that we can have on our schools and our communities and the future of this country. That's the power of mentoring. That's the purpose of what all of you are doing across America.”
During his speech, President Obama also recognized the partnership between MENTOR and Viacom Inc., a leading media company. The President applauded their strong commitment to America’s children.
The new partnership between MENTOR and Viacom Inc., is called Get Connected: Be a Mentor, Change a Life. Through Get Connected, Viacom will match its employees with students in New York City, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and Nashville. MENTOR will serve as mentoring counsel and guide to ensure Viacom is executing first-rate, quality programming throughout the country and will provide the company and its volunteer employees with state-of-the-art mentoring tools and resources.
View the video, celebrating National Mentoring Month at the White House: http://www.mentoring.org/ext/video.php
View the transcript of remarks by the President and First Lady in honor of National Mentoring Month: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-o...
Learn more about Get Connected: Be a Mentor, Change a Life, the partnership between MENTOR and Viacom: http://www.mentoring.org/news/169/
Go to www.mentoring.org to see the video of President Obama celebrating National Mentoring Month at the White House!
President Obama Notes MENTOR/Viacom Partnership
January 20, 2010: MENTOR Chairman Willem Kooyker and MENTOR President and CEO Dr. Larry Wright, along with numerous mentors and their mentees, were among those who attended today's White House event where President Obama celebrated National Mentoring Month by emphasizing the importance of being a caring adult in the life of a child.
President Obama also announced and commended a new partnership between MENTOR and Viacom Inc., a leading media company, called Get Connected: Be a Mentor, Change a Life.
In talking about the partnership, the President said, "Corporations are stepping up, as well. Viacom, for example, is working with a national nonprofit called MENTOR to provide flex time to employees who sign up to be mentors and to produce educational materials for mentoring organizations across the country."
Through Get Connected, Viacom will match its employees with high school students in the communities where it operates, including New York City, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C. and Nashville. The company will provide training for the volunteer mentors, who will make a one-year commitment to the program. Mentoring activities will focus on providing guidance and support in the areas of education, day-to-day living and career options. MENTOR will serve as mentoring counsel and guide to ensure Viacom is executing first-rate, quality programming throughout the country and will provide the company and its volunteer employees with state-of-the-art mentoring tools and resources.
Viacom, consisting of BET Networks, MTV Networks and Paramount Pictures, is the world's leading entertainment content company. It engages audiences on television, motion picture and digital platforms through many of the world's best known entertainment brands, including MTV, VH1, CMT, Logo, Nickelodeon, Nick at Nite, Nick Jr., COMEDY CENTRAL, Spike TV, TV Land, BET, Rock Band, AddictingGames, Atom, Neopets, Shockwave and Paramount Pictures. Viacom's global reach includes approximately 170 channels and 400 online properties in more than 160 countries and territories.
The organizations chose National Mentoring Month to announce their partnership to honor the President's and First Lady's unwavering commitment to mentoring and to shine a spotlight on the myriad quality mentoring programs happening throughout the country.
"We are thrilled with the President's and First Lady's support of mentoring. We are also very impressed with Viacom's vision and corporate citizenship. MENTOR and mentoring programs across the U.S. serve more than three million children. There are 17 million children who want and need mentors, leaving a gap of 14 million young people in need. MENTOR serves as a catalyst to close that gap. Viacom is a beacon of hope to those children, and we are eager for other corporations to follow their lead," Wright said.
Viacom's President and CEO Philippe Dauman commented, "Viacom has a long history of employee activism in our communities. With education being a priority area of focus among Viacom's numerous pro-social efforts, expanding our mentoring activities across the nation is a natural next step. We know what a difference mentoring can make – that it can truly alter a young person's view of what the future may hold. I know that with the expertise of MENTOR guiding our program, our employees' commitment and genuine compassion will have a profound impact on our mentees."
For more information about the White House event or about MENTOR's partnership with Viacom, contact Ellen Christman at echristman@mentoring.org.
National Mentoring Month Events Energize Communities Across America
January 12, 2010: In communities across the country, designated nonprofit and governmental agencies are promoting the positive effects of mentoring young people — and the need for more mentors — with exciting National Mentoring Month (NMM) events and activities. Examples of NMM news and events are:
A press conference on the steps of City Hall in Los Angeles with the call "for all Angelinos to donate a few hours a month to save the children of our great city," attended by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, hosted by Children Uniting Nations and their partners LA CARES Mentoring Movement, Catholic Big Brothers Big Sisters, Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater LA.
The Fox 5 Mentoring Monday telethon in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area with 14 mentoring organizations answering questions from viewers, coordinated through the Maryland Mentoring Partnership.
Professional sports events for mentors and mentees with the 76'ers in Philadelphia (United Way's Campaign for Mentors), the Cyclones in Cincinnati (Cincinnati Youth Collaborative), the Trail Blazers in Portland (Oregon Mentors), the Grizzlies in Memphis(Memphis Mentoring Partnership/Grizzlies Foundation) and the Clippers in Los Angeles (Children Uniting Nations).
Friends for Youth's 11th annual mentoring conference, Youth Mentoring 2.0: The Impacts of Technology on Programs and Relationships, in Redwood Shores, CA, with guest speaker Dr. Janis Kupersmidt. Mentoring conferences also will occur in Tucson and Seattle.
Two ribbon-cutting events for the newest Teen Trendsetters Reading Mentors programs in Miami and Jacksonville, coordinated by the Florida Mentoring Partnership.
A gym and movie day for mentors and their mentees through Mobius, the Mentoring Movement in Vermont.
Presentation of the 2010 Boren Mentoring Award by former Oklahoma Governor and U.S. Senator David Boren at the state capitol, coordinated through the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence.
Numerous events to thank mentors and mentoring supporters, including the Honor Roll Breakfast through the Governor's Prevention Partnership in Hartford to recognize 100 businesses for their investment in mentoring Connecticut's youth, with keynote speaker Marian Heard, MENTOR's vice chair.
National Mentoring Month, spearheaded by the Harvard Mentoring Project of the Harvard School of Public Health, MENTOR and the Corporation for National and Community Service, highlights the crucial role played by mentors in helping young people achieve their potential. To connect with the organization responsible for coordinating National Mentoring Month activities in your city or state, go to www.nationalmentoringmonth.org, and click on the "Local Partners" link under "About NMM."
President Obama Proclaims January National Mentoring Month
January 6, 2010: The White House has released President Obama's proclamation stating that January is officially National Mentoring Month in America.
The proclamation, in part, reads: "Every day, mentors in communities across our Nation provide crucial support and guidance to young people. Whether a day is spent helping with homework, playing catch, or just listening, these moments can have an enormous, lasting effect on a child's life. During National Mentoring Month, we recognize those who give generously of themselves by mentoring young Americans.
"NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 2010 as National Mentoring Month. I call upon public officials, business and community leaders, educators, and Americans across the country to observe this month with appropriate ceremonies, activities, and programs."
Dr. Larry Wright, MENTOR's president and CEO, said, "Having the President's recognition of National Mentoring Month is an honor and a vote of confidence for the 14 million children in our country who want and need a caring mentor in their lives. The proclamation also gives a well-deserved boost to all mentors and the quality mentoring program staff members who are working hard to make a positive difference in their communities."
In addition to the President, the U.S. Senate recently passed an official resolution for National Mentoring Month 2010.
This is the ninth annual National Mentoring Month, which was established to spotlight the importance of mentors and mentoring. The effort is spearheaded by the Harvard Mentoring Project of the Harvard School of Public Health, MENTOR and the Corporation for National and Community Service. Media partners include: CBS, FOX, NBC, MTV, Comcast, Time Warner and the National Association of Broadcasters.
To see the full Presidential Proclamation, go to www.nationalmentoringmonth.org/news_e....
Start the New Year off by joining the Mentoring Partnership of New York at a FUN- raiser for Mentoring on January 12th at Warren 77 in Tribeca.
It only takes $30.00 to enjoy 2 hours of open beer bar with friends and to send a mentoring pair to Mentors' Day at Dave and Busters.
Space is limited, click here to purchase tickets: www.mentoring.org/newyork/funraiser
I supported Mentors' Day in NYC with a $30 donation on the MPNY Cause Page: http://www.causes.com/mpny. Please consider joining the Cause and even making a donation. Thank you!
U.S. Senate Passes National Mentoring Month Resolution!
Read More: http://www.mentoring.org/news/165/
Friends,
Please Join the Mentoring Partnership of New York's Young Professional Advisory Board at a FUN – raiser for Mentoring on January 12th at Warren 77.
It only takes $30.00 to enjoy 2 hours of open beer bar with friends and to send a mentoring pair to Mentors' Day at Dave and Busters. You will also have the chance to win many exciting prizes through our raffle!
MPNY brings together hundreds of New York City's youngsters and their mentors for a day of fun and a chance to say "thanks" at the annual "Mentors' Day" this year at Dave and Busters. Mentors' Day celebrates the positive, long-lasting effects of mentoring.
Space is limited, click here to purchase tickets:
www.mentoring.org/newyork/funraiser
We look forward to seeing you on January 12, 2010 at 6:30PM!
30 Days and Counting to National Mentoring Month
December 1, 2009: With exactly one month to kickoff, National Mentoring Month 2010 promises to be filled with exciting events around the country, all promoting mentoring and the need for mentors in young people's lives.
"Expand Your Universe – Mentor a Child" is the theme for 2010. MENTOR, the Harvard School of Public Health and the Corporation for National and Community Service are working with 49 local partners to showcase mentoring in states coast to coast.
Examples of the kinds of activities that will occur are:
-A Saturday game day for 700 mentors and their mentees in New York City, courtesy of Dave & Buster's®.
-A "Mentoring Mixer" January 21, which is Thank Your Mentor Day, for all of the Utah Mentoring Partnership's mentors, mentees and partners. Local media will cover the event.
-A promotion every Monday in January with local businesses in Palm Beach, Florida, displaying recruitment materials and employees wearing t-shirts promoting mentoring and the Children's Services Council Mentor Center. A local television partner will air footage of these promotions, as well as mentor/mentee interviews, each Monday.
-A Faith In Action Sunday in Philadelphia, when faith institutions will make National Mentoring Month materials available and will encourage their members to become mentors.
-The 100 Mentors in 100 Days campaign, launched by Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metropolitan Detroit, which will include a partnership titled "Detroit McMatch" with local African-American McDonald's owners.
National public service announcements for television and radio will feature General Colin Powell, as well as the mentor/mentee pair from Fall River, Massachusetts, selected for the 2010 ReelPeople Project. Print materials, including posters, bookmarks and thank-you cards for mentors currently are being distributed.
For more information about National Mentoring Month and how to become involved, visit www.nationalmentoringmonth.org.
Happy Thanksgiving from MENTOR
November 24, 2009: In this season of giving thanks, we celebrate the generosity of partners and supporters like you, who have made so much possible for MENTOR.
An estimated 17 million children in America need and want mentors. We are able to help them and the three million children who already have mentors through our work to build:
A capacity of mentoring programs nationwide.
Quality for mentoring in general (through standards, such as the Elements of Effective Practice for Mentoring™, research and resources, such as SafetyNET, Caregiver's Choice and MentorPRO®).
Capital (an assist in raising funds for the mentoring movement to continue its critical work).
We greatly appreciate your gifts of time, partnership, treasure and talent to ensure as many children who want and need a mentor can have one.
So, on behalf of the three million young people who are in quality mentoring relationships and who now have someone to say, "I believe in you," we wish you, your organization and your family a happy Thanksgiving!
E-Mentoring
ONCE or twice a week last spring, Chris Dailey, a sales manager at a Web development firm in New York, exchange e-mail notes with an 11th-grade student at a Queens high school. The two had been matched up by iMentor, an online mentoring organization in New York City, based on the student's interest in the Web and graphic design.
read more...
http://www.nytimes.com/2000/10/12/tec...
MENTOR Celebrates SafetyNET During Crime Prevention Month
October 7, 2009: With October being National Crime Prevention Month, MENTOR applauds the National Crime Prevention Council for promoting awareness of important issues, such as victimization, especially in the mentoring community where it is critical to prevent the wrong people from connecting with America's children.
One of the most effective tools MENTOR uses to protect children is SafetyNET, which allows mentoring organizations to conduct fingerprint-based criminal background checks on potential mentors through the FBI's master criminal record database. These records include state criminal data, as well as federal offenses. SafetyNET operations are sponsored by identity theft protection champion LifeLock.
"Nearly 65,000 FBI fingerprint checks have been conducted through the PROTECT Act pilot over the past five years, and 6.1 percent of potential volunteers were found to have criminal records of concern – more than 2,000 individuals," said Tonya Wiley, MENTOR's chief administrative officer. "MENTOR is proud to be executing the SafetyNET pilot, which has helped protect countless children in youth-serving organizations."
"Until the SafetyNET pilot program was launched, it was very difficult for mentoring organizations to determine criminal records of individuals across state lines. LifeLock's commitment to safety for all Americans, especially our most vulnerable children, is unwavering," said Todd Davis, CEO of LifeLock. "Sponsoring the operations for SafetyNET is something we simply had to do."
SafetyNET is the precursor to what MENTOR hopes will be a permanent system for obtaining criminal background checks on volunteers who work with children. It began in 2003, when Congress passed a criminal background check pilot program as part of the PROTECT Act. The program is the culmination of several years of advocacy undertaken because available criminal background check systems were often cumbersome, expensive and inaccessible.
The SafetyNET pilot will continue until January 31, 2010. MENTOR, LifeLock and others are working with Congress on legislation that would create a permanent successor to SafetyNET (H.R. 5606 and S. 2756).
For more information on SafetyNET, visit http://www.mentoring.org/safetynet.
Disney Parks Hopes to Inspire 1 Million Volunteers Beginning January 1, 2010
Disney Parks has announced a new program that celebrates the spirit of volunteer service with a simple proposition: "Give a Day, Get a Disney Day."
Disney hopes to inspire families to volunteer in their communities during 2010 through this first of its kind program. One million people who perform volunteer service for a participating organization will receive a free one-day admission ticket to a Walt Disney World Resort or Disneyland Resort theme park. While the "Give a Day, Get a Disney Day" program kicks off Jan. 1, right now guests can learn more about the program and how to get their free one-day admission to a Walt Disney World or Disneyland theme park by visiting www.DisneyParks.com Read the full press release.
Television Shows Promote Volunteering the week of October 19 – 25!
http://www.mentoring.org/news/147/
Television Shows Promote Volunteering
September 29, 2009: Television viewers will notice the week of October 19 – 25 that their favorite characters and actors are promoting volunteerism to a level never before seen in the entertainment industry.
The effort is part of a multi-year initiative from the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF) titled "I Participate," which will encourage Americans to embrace a new way of thinking about service and aims to persuade millions of people to volunteer regularly.
"We are trying to broaden the collective national conversation about service," said EIF's President and CEO Lisa Paulsen. Added supporter and Tony-Award-Winning Actress Bernadette Peters, "I think it's important to help people and causes that need our help. The 'I Participate' campaign will ultimately involve all segments of the entertainment community including film studios, the recording industry, Broadway and others."
More than 70 daytime and primetime television shows on ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC and additional networks will spotlight service through scripted programming, segments and public service announcements with inspirational messages and storylines about volunteerism.
"We are grateful to EIF for choosing service as the centerpiece for this long-term campaign," said MENTOR's Chief Administrative Officer Tonya Wiley. "We know that Mentoring Partnerships and mentoring programs across the country will be able to use these extremely visible opportunities to recruit mentors from an even broader pool. The most wonderful outcome, of course, will be to see an increase in the number of children who are matched with caring adults as a result of EIF's commitment."
To date, EIF has received formal support for "I Participate" from the television networks, AARP, Medco Health Solutions, Major League Baseball and UnitedHealthcare. Celebrities participating in the recent campaign launch in New York City were Ashton Kutcher, Tyler Perry, Randy Jackson, Christine Baranski, Fran Drescher, Sway Calloway, Kenneth Cole, Rocco DiSpirito, Kelley Menighan Hensley, Bernadette Peters, Cameron Mathison, Tim Daly, Lee Ann Womack, Constantine Maroulis, Jeff Francoeur and Al Leiter.
EIF is the leading charitable organization of the entertainment industry, having distributed hundreds of millions of dollars to support programs addressing critical health, education and social issues. For more information about "I Participate," visit www.iparticipate.org.
To Counteract Job Search Blues, Volunteer
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/11/job...
9/11 National Day of Service and Remembrance
http://serve.gov/assets/documents/09_...
Minnesota Man Rollerblades to D.C. for Mentoring
September 1, 2009: These are the words Gary Walters wrote on his blog August 8, the day he began rollerblading 1,300 miles from Brainerd, Minnesota, to Washington, D.C., to promote mentoring: "The reason for all these events is that if good people give a little to a kid, then our world will be better."
Gary's rollerblading odyssey is the latest in his series of feats to raise money and awareness for his local youth mentoring program – Kinship Partners, Inc. – and for mentoring in general. To date, contributions total almost $9,000.
Kinship Partners is a part of the Mentoring Partnership of Minnesota's network of more than 500 mentoring programs. "We have to applaud Gary and his family for their commitment to recruiting mentors for youth who would really benefit from a mentoring relationship," said Judith Kahn, interim executive director of the Mentoring Partnership of Minnesota. "Sometimes it takes extraordinary actions by ordinary people to get the message across – that not everyone can (or would want to!) rollerblade across the country, but everyone can be a positive force in the life of a child."
Over the past six years, Gary's activities have included biking from New Orleans to Brainerd, walking across Minnesota and living on the local, historic water tower for nine days. Each challenge has raised between $7,000 and $25,000 for Kinship Partners. This trip, which Gary is making with his 15-year-old son rollerblading by his side and his wife and daughter following in a vehicle, will end September 9, when U.S. Rep. Jim Oberstar (D-Minn.) meets him on the steps of the U.S. Capitol building.
Along the way, Gary is meeting with mentoring groups and getting as much publicity as possible. When he returns home, he will go back to his insurance business.
Another blog entry reads: "Kids are the future of our world, and all kids need the guidance and love of an adult. Some don't get this at home, or at least not enough. Thus mentoring programs are there to fill the gap."
To follow Gary and/or make a donation, go to http://www.whatisgarygoingtodo.com/. For more information about mentoring, visit www.mentoring.org.
MENTOR's Online Data Tracking Tool Being Used Across America
August 25, 2009: From Washington to Florida, mentoring programs are using MENTOR's online data tracking and analysis tool to manage information and, ultimately, make mentoring relationships more effective.
To date, nearly 10,000 young people are supported with this state-of-the-art tool called MentorPRO®, which was designed to help better manage programs, enhance mentoring relationships and evaluate outcomes.
Sixteen Mentoring Partnerships across the country, 440 mentoring programs and more than 700 staff members use MentorPRO with its standardized measures and common system for collecting, tracking and analyzing data online.
"We developed MentorPRO so that mentoring programs can move to the next level in not only keeping information but also in being able to share that information and use it to improve their programs," said MENTOR's Chief Administrative Officer Tonya Wiley. "We are happy with the way Mentoring Partnerships are integrating this tool into their communities because it will, over time, undoubtedly, enhance program quality."
MENTOR works with the full network of Mentoring Partnerships to roll-out MentorPRO to eligible programs in their state or community. Each Mentoring Partnership and the mentoring programs selected go through a two-step training process of an online introductory session followed by an intensive, in-person training. After training and registration, the mentoring programs are eligible to use MentorPRO.
The 16 Mentoring Partnerships currently using MentorPRO are: The Mentoring Partnership of New York, Mentoring Partnership of Long Island (NY), Washington State Mentors, Mentor Michigan, The Mentoring Partnership of Southwestern Pennsylvania (Pittsburgh), Oregon Mentors, Maryland Mentoring Partnership, Volunteer Center of Southern Arizona, Virginia Mentoring Partnership, Mass Mentoring Partnership, Connecticut Mentoring Partnership, Rhode Island Mentoring Partnership, Georgia Mentoring Partnership, Memphis Mentoring Partnership/Grizzlies Foundation, Mentor Center of Palm Beach County (FL) and Mobius, The Mentoring Movement (VT).
For more information regarding MentorPRO's availability in your community, please contact Kim Jessup, director of MentorPRO, at kjessup@mentoring.org.
MENTOR Applauds Commitment to Mentoring in President's Budget Proposal
February 9, 2010: Funding opportunities for mentoring programs are included in President Obama's recently-released $3.8 trillion budget proposal for fiscal year 2011.
Specifically, the budget would fund the Mentoring Children of Prisoner's Program: Caregiver's Choice and would increase funding for programs as authorized by the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act.
"We are pleased that the President has funded the Mentoring Children of Prisoner's Program at nearly $50 million," said MENTOR's President and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Larry Wright. "This program under the Department of Health and Human Services offers critical support, including mentoring, to children of incarcerated parents."
"We also applaud the President for working toward full funding of the Serve America Act," continued Wright. "This funding would offer increased opportunities for Mentoring Partnerships and mentoring programs to grow and excel."
The Serve America Act, passed in 2009, reauthorizes and expands national service programs administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS). The President's proposed $1.416 billion for CNCS would enable more mentoring relationships for the young people who need them and would help close the gap of 15 million children in America who need a caring adult in their lives.
As the Congressional House and Senate develop their appropriations bills for fiscal year 2011, MENTOR will work with Mentoring Partnerships, mentoring supporters and Congressional mentoring champions to advocate for the proposed mentoring funds.
For more information on how to become involved in MENTOR's public affairs efforts, visit http://www.mentoring.org/take_action/....