National Mentoring Month

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Started in 2002, National Mentoring Month is an American promotional campaign which highlights mentoring and the impact it can have on young lives. It is spearheaded by the Harvard School of Public Health,^[1] MENTOR,^[2] and the Corporation for National & Community Service.^[3] The campaign’s primary goal is to recruit volunteer mentors to help young people achieve their full potential in life. This month-long outreach campaign raises attention on the need for mentors. In December 2007, President Bush endorsed the campaign by proclaiming January 2008 National Mentoring Month. The declaration was endorsed by both chambers of the Congress.

A highlight of the campaign, Thank Your Mentor Day will be held on January 24, 2008. It will mark the fifth annual Thank Your Mentor Day, which many mentoring programs select as a day of volunteer recognition. The messages of this special day include:

Too many young people do not have a caring adult mentor to provide encouragement and support;
Mentoring programs can provide the link to this support; but
Programs need volunteers to close the gap.

National Mentoring Month was established to raise awareness about the importance—and power—of mentoring. The campaign encourages people to think of the mentors in their own lives—a team coach, teacher, boss, concerned neighbor, or another caring adult—and take a few minutes to thank them and then consider becoming a mentor themselves. With MENTOR's ZIP code search, people can find profiles of local mentoring programs—e-mentoring, group, or one-to-one—and choose the program that works best.

Individuals and organizations can stay up-to-date on mentoring activities in each state during the National Mentoring Month. State Mentoring Partnerships use the month of January to focus national attention on youth mentoring—how it benefits young people, adults, and society as a whole.

The campaign's fifth annual Thank Your Mentor Day” will be held on January 24, 2008; and will be used by many mentoring programs to recognise the work of volunteers.

Watch a short video of celebrities promoting the need for mentoring.