HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 01-19-2021; 4-c - National Mentoring Month Proclamation 1
ORANGE COUNTY
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT
Meeting Date: January 19, 2021
Action Agenda
Item No. 4-c
SUBJECT: National Mentoring Month Proclamation
DEPARTMENT: Board of Commissioners
ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT:
Proclamation Commissioner Renee Price, 245-2130
Greg Wilder, 919-245-2300
PURPOSE: To consider a proclamation designating January 2021 as National Mentoring Month
in Orange County.
BACKGROUND: National Mentoring Month is a campaign held each January to promote youth
mentoring in the United States. It was inaugurated in 2002, and has been spearheaded by the
Harvard School of Public Health and MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership.
National Mentoring Month focuses national attention on the need for mentors, as well as how
individuals, businesses, government agencies, schools, faith communities and nonprofits can
work together to increase the number of mentors to help ensure positive outcomes for young
people. The campaign celebrates mentoring and the positive effect it can have on young lives,
with goals to:
• Raise awareness of mentoring in its various forms;
• Recruit individuals to mentor, especially in programs that have waiting lists of young
people; and
• Promote the rapid growth of mentoring by recruiting organizations to engage their
constituents in mentoring.
Mentoring is a critical component in young people's lives, helping them make the decisions and
connections that lead to opportunity.
FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no financial impact associated with consideration of the
proclamation.
SOCIAL JUSTICE IMPACT: There is no Orange County Social Justice Goal impact associated
with consideration of the proclamation.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT: There is no Orange County Environmental Responsibility Goal
impact associated with this item.
RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends that the Board approve and authorize the
Chair to sign the proclamation.
2
ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROCLAMATION
NATIONAL MENTORING MONTH
WHEREAS, January 2021 marks the 19t" anniversary of National Mentoring Month, an annual
campaign to focus attention on the need for mentors, as well as how each of us can work
together to increase the number of mentors to help ensure positive outcomes for our young
people; and
WHEREAS, Orange County honors volunteer mentors who support young people by showing
up for them and demonstrating their commitment to helping them thrive; and
WHEREAS, mentoring programs such as MENTOR North Carolina make our communities and
our state stronger by building meaningful relationships that increase social capital for young
people and provide invaluable support networks; and
WHEREAS, during the COVID-19 pandemic, mentoring programs have stepped up to fill gaps
for young people and families, connecting them with resources and ensuring that mentoring
relationships continue virtually to ensure social connection despite physical distancing; and
WHEREAS, mentoring plays a pivotal role in career exploration and supports workplace skills
by helping young people set career goals, equipping mentors with the skills needed to support
the professional growth of young people, and driving positive outcomes for young people and
businesses; and
WHEREAS, quality mentoring promotes healthy relationships and communication, self-esteem,
emotional growth and well-being for young people; and
WHEREAS, students who meet regularly with their mentors are more than 52 percent less likely
than their peers to skip a day of school, and youth who face an opportunity gap and have a
mentor are 55 percent more likely to be enrolled in college than those who without a mentor;
and
WHEREAS, youth who meet regularly with their mentors are 46 percent less likely than their
peers to start using drugs and 27 percent less likely to start drinking; and
WHEREAS, almost half of adults today report having a mentor in their youth and those rates
appear to have been rising steadily over the past several decades, and
WHEREAS, National Mentoring Month is the time of year to celebrate and promote mentors,
mentees and the mentoring movement;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Orange County Board of County
Commissioners does hereby proclaim January 2021 as National Mentoring Month in Orange
County and encourages members of the community to elevate and encourage mentoring
throughout our county, the state and the nation for the sake of our younger generations and the
future.
This the 19' day of January, 2021.
Renee Price, Chair
Orange County Board of Commissioners