Federal Government Rings in the New Year with Strong Support of Mentoring

With vigorous grassroots and MENTOR-led advocacy on Capitol Hill, Congress has allocated $100 million in funding to benefit mentoring organizations throughout the country in fiscal year 2008. The appropriations bill provides nearly $50 million for the Mentoring Children of Prisoners program at the Department of Labor's Heath and Human Services, and restores almost $50 million for Department of Education's mentoring programs grants. These grant programs are a critical source of federal funds that continue to contribute to the growth of high-quality mentoring nationwide.

In addition, through the continuing leadership of mentoring advocate Sen. Arlen Specter, the bill includes direct grants of $413,000 and $330,000 for the Mentoring Partnership of Southwestern Pennsylvania and the United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania respectively. These funds will have a dramatic and immediate impact on each organization's ability to attract additional mentors into high-quality mentoring relationships in both metro Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.

Mentoring received one more boost last week, when the President issued a proclamation designating January 2008 as National Mentoring Month. In the announcement, which can be read here, he praised the impact of mentoring and declared his Administration's continued support. National Mentoring Month is an initiative of the Harvard Mentoring Project, MENTOR, and the Corporation for National and Community Service.

Congress will also be joining in the celebration of National Mentoring Month. Senators Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and John McCain (R-AZ) will be introducing the Senate resolution, and House Mentoring Caucus Co-Chairs Betty McCollum (D-MN), Mike Rogers (R-MI), Susan Davis (D-CA), and Ric Keller (R-FL) will sponsor the House resolution.

You can help engage members of Congress in your area in support of mentoring. To ask your Senators and Representative to cosponsor the National Mentoring Month resolution.

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