To apply for this program, please follow these steps:
- Download the Mentoring Application
- Print out the file and fill it out with your information.
- Submit the completed form to: info@riseupnwalk.org
The Facts about Mentoring
It is important to know why mentoring works. Here is a list of facts about the value of formal mentoring from various studies done over the past several years.
- Youth in mentoring programs are 46% less likely to start using drugs than their peers.
- 27% less likely to start drinking.
Research indicates that the length, frequency, and quality of the mentoring relationship increase the likelihood of positive outcomes; sound program practices can support this. Participating in mentoring promotes positive social attitudes and relationships.
- Mentored youth have better attitudes towards elders and towards helping in general.
- Mentored youth show improved relationships with parents.
Young people who understand the value of a high-quality relationship with their mentors experience the best results. Mentoring works best when both the mentor and mentee are getting something from the relationship. When mentees see that admired adults find it personally rewarding to spend time with them, they feel a new surge of self-worth and empowerment.
- Youth are more likely to benefit if mentors maintain frequent contact with them and know their families.
Overall, youth in mentoring relationships experience positive academic returns.
- Mentees maintain a better attitude about school.
- Are 52% less likely than their peers to skip school.
- 37% less likely to skip a class.
- Juniors and seniors in mentoring programs are more likely to graduate high school.
- Have a better chance of higher education.
It costs taxpayers $1,700,000.00 to place an 18-year-old person in the justice system for a lifetime. Compare this with the cost of a mentoring program.
Today, thanks to the commitment and dedication of mentoring advocates, 3 million young Americans are now enjoying mentoring many benefits. That’s a six-fold increase in formal mentoring relationships since the national mentoring movement galvanized the nation in the early 1990s. It’s an impressive accomplishment. But with 15 million more young people awaiting their turn, America needs to put its energies into making mentoring a reality for every child.
During the past 18 months, the mentoring community has been engaged in a national conversation to determine how America can close this mentoring gap. With millions of young lives in the balance, it is time to develop a “culture of mentoring” – a culture where mentoring is viewed as integral to the health and well-being of both the participant and organization. Rise Up & Walk believe that such a culture is possible. The latest research indicates that sufficient volunteer interest exists: a recently conducted national poll has found that over 90 percent of current mentors are satisfied with their experience and would recommend mentoring to others. The same poll suggests that as many as 44 million adults would be willing to volunteer as mentors. Yet, only a fraction has initiated the steps to do so.
Based on certain life circumstances, such factors as poor academic performance, substance abuse, and early sexual activity, an estimated 17.6 million young people are in special need of mentors. Without caring adults to offer guidance and support, these kids will easily fail to live up to their potential. Fortunately, according to the Mentoring in America 2013 national poll, 3 million have found high-quality mentoring relationships. The remaining 15 million make up our nation’s “mentoring gap.” Rise Up & Walk Youth Outreach Center Inc.’s top priority is to partner in closing that gap.
Mentoring Research Highlights
A study by Child Trends found that mentored youth:
- Improve their school attendance and academic work
- Are more likely to go on to higher education and
- Feel more positive toward school and teachers.
A study conducted by Dr. Jean Rhodes and colleagues found that mentored youth:
- Feel closer to their parents and communicate more effectively with them
- Get more emotional support from their friends and peers and
- Experience a greater sense of self-worth.
Rhodes, Grossman, and Reach, “Agents of change: Pathways through which mentoring relationships influence adolescents’ academic adjustment,” Child Development 91(200).
A Contemporary Idea with Ancient Roots
While “mentoring” has become something of a buzzword in recent years, its roots date back to Ancient Greece. In Homer’s epic poem, The Odyssey, Odysseus asks his trusted friend, Mentor, to watch over his household and guide the development of his son, Telepaths, while Odysseus embarks on his 20-year journey. Mentor advises Telepaths throughout his life, serving as both instructor and role model and eventually preparing Telepaths to journey into the world.
Today, we use “mentor” as a verb: describing the act of providing guidance and support; and as a noun: describing the person who provides such guidance and support. We believe that all young people have the potential to succeed in life and contribute to society and that mentoring can be a powerful tool for helping them fulfill their potential.
A Closing Note
In June of 2005, a college freshman named Earn Garrett addressed a group of over 600 mentoring supporters at Mentor’s National Recognition Event. What he said would move everyone there.
Six years earlier, as a 13-year-old being raised by a single mother in a depressed section of Omaha, Nebraska, Garrett was chosen to participate in a mentoring program for low-income students who showed academic promise. Mentoring helped Garrett realize that promise, and he has since returned the favor, serving as a mentor in a program he helped create at Howard University.
As he concluded his remarks on that June evening in New York City, Garrett thanked the audience for their support and urged them to help create a nation in which every young person would have the same opportunities he has been given. He described that nation as “a limitless America, a mentored America, and a better America.” At that moment, with those words, Garrett embodied the power and the potential of mentoring.
How would America differ from the nation we live in today?
Young people would still face many challenges: the growth of mentoring won’t eliminate problems such as failing schools, poverty, fractured family structures, and the temptations of illegal drugs. But in “a mentored America,” no young person would feel that he or she faced these challenges alone. In a mentored America, individuals of different generations and backgrounds would feel a sense of connectedness, and a sense of family. In a mentored America, the encouragement, support, and guidance of a trusted adult would help steer young people through the challenges and toward their true potential. The journey would still be difficult for many, but in a mentored America, it would be a journey of hope and a journey that would lead to a brighter future for millions of young people. Rise Up & Walk Youth Outreach Center Inc. has become a “Mentor,” become an instructor, and a role model for hundreds of youth in New York City. Our goal is to partner with as many existing mentoring programs and movements to connect New York City and America’s young people with caring mentors. Rise Up & Walk‘s belief is that with mentors’ help and guidance, each child can discover how to unlock and achieve his or her own potential.
As a partner in this national campaign, Rise Up & Walk is dedicated to delivering an effective and quality-based mentoring program to effectively serve young people and make mentoring a reality for more of New York City and America’s young people.
Rise Up & Walk Youth Outreach Center Inc. is affiliated with Mentoring Partnership of New York and Mentor, a National organization linked with more than 4,000 mentoring programs nationwide.
For more information on enrolling your child, please contact our main office at 718-971-9940, M-F, 9 am-6 pm.
– Clyde Evans Jr.
Founder & CEO