[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 660 Engrossed in House (EH)]
H. Res. 660
In the House of Representatives, U.S.,
February 8, 2006.
Whereas youth mentoring is a centuries-old concept, through which a dependable
adult provides guidance, support, and encouragement to help a young
person become a responsible, productive adult;
Whereas mentoring, when done well, helps young people stay in school and improve
academically, boosts self-esteem and communication skills, and improves
the chances of going on to higher education;
Whereas there are thousands of mentoring programs in communities of all sizes
across the United States, focused on building strong, effective
relationships between caring and responsible adults and young people who
need positive adult role models;
Whereas in spite of the great benefits mentoring provides, America has a serious
mentoring gap, with more than 15 million young people currently in need
of caring adult role models;
Whereas the demand for mentoring far exceeds the current capacity of local
mentoring programs and the number of adults who currently volunteer as
mentors;
Whereas on December 22, 2005, the President designated January 2006 as National
Mentoring Month to focus the Nation's attention on the essential role
mentoring plays in the lives of young people;
Whereas the month-long celebration of mentoring will encourage more individuals
and organizations, including schools, businesses, nonprofit
organizations, faith institutions, and foundations, to become engaged in
mentoring; and
Whereas National Mentoring Month will, most importantly, build awareness of
mentoring and recruit more individuals to become mentors, helping close
our Nation's mentoring gap: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) supports the goals and ideals of National Mentoring Month;
(2) acknowledges the hard work of individuals and groups who promote
mentoring and who are observing the month with appropriate ceremonies
and activities that promote awareness of and volunteer involvement with
youth mentoring; and
(3) recognizes with gratitude the contributions of the millions of
caring adults who are already serving as mentors and encourages more
adults to volunteer as mentors.
Attest:
Clerk.