Congressional Record

Remarks from January 23, 2008

Pages H 417 through 418

Representative Betty McCollum (D-MN)

    Ms. McCOLLUM of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, as a cochair of the Congressional Mentoring Caucus, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 908, supporting the goals and ideals of National Mentoring Month.

   Thank you, Chairman Kildee and Chairman Miller, for bringing this legislation so quickly to the floor. I would also like to thank the other Chairs of the mentoring caucus, Ms. Davis of California, Mr. Keller of Florida and Mr. Rogers of Michigan, who are the original cosponsors of this legislation.

   The term "mentor'' is from a Greek story in mythology. Odysseus asked his friend, Mentor, to teach and watch his young son, Telemachus, as he was off to fight in the Trojan War. This special relationship between Telemachus and his mentor was centered on education, friendship and advice, something we all need from time to time. Mentoring was then, and continues to be, a special caring and supportive relationship between two people based on mutual trust and respect.

   Mentoring relationships are between a mentor, an adult, and a mentee, a young adult or child, that focuses on the need of that young person. Caring adults, parents, teachers, counselors, religious leaders, they are all mentors, and they are all able to influence a child's life, and they are able to do that because they provide a foundation of love, support and guidance.

   Millions of individuals across this country serve as mentors to young men and women, encouraging them to develop strong characters and have healthy identities of themselves, so that as an adult they will be able to contribute back to our society.

   In a review of 10 mentoring programs, there are indicators that one-on-one mentoring significantly enhances positive youth development in ways that we can measure: better school performance, better social skills, but most importantly, the ability for them to want to continue on with higher education and college. And that is according to a recent national youth conference that was held at the University of Minnesota.

   In Minnesota alone, there are 335 mentoring organizations. One of them, the Mentoring Partnership of Minnesota, was formed in 1994 as a community initiative to promote mentoring for Minnesota's youth, particularly for those who are at risk and may not have an opportunity to have many positive role models in their life. This program has made a significant positive improvement in the lives of those children. 

   Another wonderful mentoring program is Big Brothers and Big Sisters. In the St. Paul-Minneapolis region alone, there are more than 307,000 children that benefit from this mentoring program with the time, energy and commitment from more than 3,200 volunteers.  

   The new Youth Initiative Mentoring Academy is another successful program in Minnesota. This energetic program works with children at risk. These young children receive hands-on learning experiences about career opportunities, building confidence and self-esteem, and develop valuable leadership skills.

   Mentoring is also an important part of our global competitiveness. For example, in my district, Century College offers a pre-engineering program that includes the Century College Robot Show. Engineering students enter their projects, the college invites practicing engineers to judge the show, and Century College also extends an invitation to high school students to come so that they are able to see the opportunities available to them if they choose to study engineering. But it also gives them a chance to hook up with students and professionals who can help them steer interests in the right direction towards a successful career.

   I would also like to take time to thank all the congressional staff members, including many from my staff, who take time to mentor youth in programs such as Everyone Wins, Horton's Kids, and the Calvary Homeless Shelter.

   We all have an important role to play in the lives of children around us. We all need to be part of the process in shaping young lives so that they can achieve their fullest potential. Our youth need caring adults to make the connection in order to provide guidance and emotional support, to make a positive impact on their lives so that young children can become responsible, productive citizens.

   I encourage all of my colleagues to support this resolution, and I look forward for opportunities to be a mentor myself again in the future as I had been in the past. But I also encourage my colleagues to look for opportunities to be mentors as well.