WHEREAS, January is National Mentoring Month, an annual campaign to recruit quality mentors to provide additional networks of support for young people; and
WHEREAS, Salt Lake City recognizes the contributions of volunteer mentors, who guide young people to succeed in their education, career, and well-being; and
WHEREAS, mentoring programs like Big Brothers Big Sisters of Utah make our state and communities stronger by enabling impactful relationships that increase social capital for young people and provide invaluable support networks; and
WHEREAS, throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, mentoring programs have stepped up to ensure that mentoring relationships continue virtually, while also connecting families to critical resources and services; and
WHEREAS, mentors can help young people explore careers and build skills to achieve higher lifetime economic outcomes through activities like helping them set career goals, write a resume, practice for an interview, connecting them to opportunities, and more; and
WHEREAS, research has demonstrated that mentoring programs have a significant, positive impact on a variety of academic achievement measures, including truancy and absenteeism, scholastic efficacy and engagement, school-related misconduct, and peer support; and
WHEREAS, mentoring can be an especially effective prevention and intervention strategy for young people with marginalized identities, such as youth with disabilities, BIPOC youth, LGBTQIA+ youth, and youth with experience in foster care; and
WHEREAS, quality mentoring promotes healthy relationships and communication, positive self-esteem, emotional well-being, and relationship growth for young people; and
WHEREAS, with a mentor, youth facing risk are more likely to enroll in college, less likely to start using drugs, and more likely to volunteer regularly in their communities; and
WHEREAS, while one in three young people still grow up without a mentor, demonstrating the need for additional awareness and resources for mentoring programs; and
WHEREAS, National Mentoring Month is the time of year to celebrate, elevate, and encourage mentoring across our state and recruit caring adult mentors in Salt Lake City, Utah.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, Erin Mendenhall, Mayor of Salt Lake City, do hereby proclaim January 2023 as:
Mentoring Month in Salt Lake City
To view an electronic copy of the signed proclamation, click here.