Did You Know: January 2022 is the 20th Anniversary of National Mentoring Month! by Emily Kawasaki
Jan 17, 2022Not many people know that January is celebrated as National Mentoring Month in the United States. National Mentoring Month, which was established by MENTOR and MENTOR Affiliates, is an annual, month-long campaign dedicated to recognizing mentoring and the impact it can have on people’s lives., celebrating the power of mentoring, and encouraging others to explore how mentoring programs can enable organizations to create more productive, engaged and satisfied people. Many well-known nonprofit organizations, elected officials across all levels of government, and several U.S. Presidents and their administrations have been supporting and participating in National Mentoring Month since its inception in 2002. (Wikipedia, 2022)
Be it supporting youth and young adults or developing volunteers and employees, mentoring helps people to unleash their full potential by learning from others. (Chronus, 2021) Therefore, in honor and celebration of National Mentoring Month, please consider being part of the SIETAR-USA Mentor Program, as many of our new members are interested in connecting with those who are more seasoned in the field, and this is an opportunity to expand our profession. Please feel free to email Cheryl Woehr at [email protected] or [email protected] if you have questions about or would like more information about the SIETAR-USA Mentor Program.
There are also many different ways for organizations and people to get involved with National Mentoring Month.
- Celebrate: Throughout January, there are several important dates in which to participate and promote.
- January 6: I am a Mentor Day
- January 17: International Mentoring Day
- January 27: Thank Your Mentor Day
- Engage: There are many locally and nationally-organized events, celebrations, and learning opportunities hosted throughout the month by different organizations. One such event is the National Mentoring Summit. It is an annual event focused on the mentoring movement, which aims gather mentoring advocates, advance a collective mentoring agenda, strengthen mentoring programs and practices, and collaborate to support positive youth development through mentoring. (Wikipedia, 2022)
- Elevate: Check out the National Mentoring Month toolkits to learn active steps you can take to create mentoring opportunities in your community, at your workplace, and across the country. (Wikipedia, 2022)
- Join the Movement: Check out Mentoring Connector, which is a free, national database of mentoring programs and begin exploring local mentoring opportunities. (Wikipedia, 2022)
For those interested in collecting connecting with mentors nationally, this year is the 12th National Mentoring Summit. It will take place virtually on January 27th and 28th. This is the only national summit to convene youth mentoring professionals, researchers, MENTOR Affiliates, philanthropic investors, and government and civic leaders. The summit aims at collectively strengthening and expanding quality mentoring relationships for young people across the country. (MENTOR Maryland/DC, 2021)
Works Cited
- (2021, December 23). How to Celebrate National Mentoring Month. Retrieved January 9, 2022, from https://chronus.com/national-mentoring-month
- MENTOR Maryland, DC. (2021, December 13). National Mentoring Month 2022. Retrieved January 9, 2022, from https://mentormddc.org/nmm/
- MENTOR National. (2022, January 2). Become or Find a Mentor. Retrieved January 9, 2022, from https://www.mentoring.org/
- MENTOR National. (2022b, January 4). National Mentoring Month. Amplify Mentoring. Retrieved January 9, 2022, from https://www.mentoring.org/campaigns/national-mentoring-month/
- The White House. (2007, December 19). National Mentoring Month, 2008. Retrieved January 9, 2022, from https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2007/12/20071219-4.html
- The White House. (2021, December 30). A Proclamation on National Mentoring Month, 2022. Retrieved January 9, 2022, from https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/12/30/a-proclamation-on-national-mentoring-month-2022/
Wikipedia contributors. (2022, January 6). National Mentoring Month. Wikipedia. Retrieved January 9, 2022, from https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Mentoring_Month
