For Immediate Release
Thursday, January 20, 2011
America's Promise Alliance Joins MENTOR as National Partner in January National Mentoring Summit
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- America’s Promise Alliance (the Alliance) announced today they will join major, national youth serving organizations in the first ever, National Mentoring Summit to be held at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., January 25, 2011. The summit will bring together influential mentoring stakeholders from the public and private sectors to chart the mentoring field’s future, expand its circle of influence, and focus the power of mentoring on a set of measurable outcomes.
The summit will be hosted by MENTOR, the Corporation for National and Community Service, the U.S. Department of Justice – Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, the Harvard School of Public Health and partner organizations. The day-long discussion will bring together America’s foremost mentoring researchers, benefactors, policy makers and mentoring practitioners for workshops and information sharing.
The event will also provide the culminating moment for the 10th anniversary of National Mentoring Month, which is the national media campaign to raise awareness about mentoring produced by the Harvard School of Public Health, MENTOR and the Corporation for National and Community Service. Thousands of programs in all 50 states participate in National Mentoring Month events.
“We know—and research validates— the positive impact that mentors and caring adults have in the lives of young people and in helping reduce the high school dropout rate,” said Marguerite Kondracke, president and CEO of America’s Promise Alliance. “This is just one of many reasons that MENTOR is such a vital and treasured partner in our work and why we felt it was so important for us to support this summit. By working together, I believe we can keep our young people safe, in school, and on track for a healthy and successful future.”
The theme for this summit, “Achieving Academic and Social Success: Supporting Youth through Mentoring” will coincide with the emphasis youth serving organizations are placing on improving the graduation rate of high-school students and deterring youth engagement in the juvenile justice system.
America’s Promise Alliance joins other founding summit partners such as, Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, Boys and Girls Clubs of America, College Success Foundation, Communities In Schools; Dare Mighty Things, Inc., Mentoring USA, National Alliance of Faith and Justice, National CARES Mentoring Movement, National Assembly, National Dropout Prevention Center, Points of Light Institute/HandsOn Network and United Way Worldwide.
In addition, Congressional mentoring champions who have signed on as Honorary Host Committee members are: Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-HI), Sen. Thomas Carper (D-DE), Sen. John Conyers (D-MI), Rep. Susan Davis (D-CA), Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA), Sen. John Kerry (D-MA), Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN), Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI), Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY).
“Twenty years ago, MENTOR was created as a catalyst to grow the mentoring movement in the United States, and today, mentoring is a large and vital field with more than 5,000 programs serving three million young people,” said MENTOR’s President and CEO Dr. Larry Wright. “This National Mentoring Summit will give mentoring stakeholders the opportunity to come together so we can continue our combined effort to serve the 15 million children who are still waiting for quality mentors.”
Summit participants will include representatives invited from MENTOR’s network of affiliated Mentoring Partnerships and from founding partner networks and local National Mentoring Month partners.
For more information, contact MENTOR at summit@mentoring.org. For more information about academic achievement through mentoring, visit www.mentoring.org/program_resources/academic_achievement_initiative.
MENTOR is a founding partner of America’s Promise Alliance. To view the Alliance’s Founding Chairman General Colin Powell’s National Mentoring Month public service announcement, visit: http://www.americaspromise.org/Resources/Videos/National-Mentoring-Month-2011.aspx.
About America’s Promise Alliance
America’s Promise Alliance is the nation’s largest partnership organization dedicated to improving the lives of children and youth by raising awareness, supporting communities, and engaging in nonpartisan advocacy. Through our Grad Nation campaign, we harness the collective power of our partner network to mobilize Americans to end the high school dropout crisis and prepare young people for college and the 21st century workforce. Building on the legacy of our Founding Chairman General Colin Powell, the Alliance believes the success of our young people is grounded in the Five Promises—caring adults; safe places; a healthy start; an effective education; and opportunities to help others. For more information about America’s Promise Alliance, visit www.americaspromise.org.
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