Annual survey shows a 33 percent increase over 2004

First Gentleman Daniel G. Mulhern today announced that more than 35,000 children in Michigan were mentored in the past year, an increase of 33 percent over 2004.   The figures are from the Mentor Michigan Census conducted by Kahle Research Associates and released today by Mentor Michigan, the Michigan Community Service Commission (MCSC), and Commission Chair Mulhern. 

"Mentoring organizations in Michigan are serving 35,000 children, more than 11,700 than in September 2004," Mulhern told a capacity crowd at Michigan's Premiere Mentoring Conference:  Shaping Mentoring's Future, sponsored by Mentor Michigan and the MCSC.  "Mentoring is alive and well in Michigan, and I applaud the mentoring programs that are providing our children with high-quality programs that build character and competence."

Other findings of the mentoring survey released by Mulhern include the following:

• There are 4,081 children on waiting lists with mentoring programs.
• Thirty-five percent of mentors in Michigan are men.
• Thirty percent of mentors are people of color.
• Forty-four percent of mentees are children of color.

Joining Mulhern at the conference were nationally renowned authorities on mentoring   Dr. Susan G. Weinberger, an international consultant on mentoring and founder and president of the Mentor Consulting Group, known as Dr. Mentor; and Richard Rowe, CEO of the African American Male Leadership Institute.  Rowe, an expert on recruiting African American male mentors, noted that Michigan has a great need for male mentors, particularly men of color, based on the survey findings.  He said the disparity that exists between the mentors and mentees of color creates a dilemma for mentoring programs trying to match children with mentors from the same ethnic and gender backgrounds.

Rowe, who has 18 years of experience in the field of mentoring, discussed issues that are unique to the African American male population.  He offered insights to help mentoring programs reach out to men and minority populations during their recruitment efforts.

Weinberger has been recognized for her expertise in establishing, maintaining, and evaluating school, corporate, and community-based mentoring programs and school-to-work initiatives.  Her work has been published widely, and the program she designed has been replicated in 48 states as well as Bermuda and Canada.  Dr. Weinberger's latest book, Mentoring A Movement: My Personal Journey, is an account of her experiences over more than two decades as a pioneer in the field of mentoring.

More than 400 representatives from mentoring programs across the state participated in the conference to learn best practices and gain new skills so they can implement high-quality mentoring programs for children.  

Mentor Michigan, led by Governor Jennifer M. Granholm and First Gentleman Daniel G. Mulhern, is working to ensure that all our youth have ongoing relationships with stable, caring individuals.   Together with mentoring programs throughout the state, Mentor Michigan recruits mentors, develops partners and champions, advocates for mentoring issues and standards, provides resources and training, and recognizes the accomplishments of mentors and the organizations that support them.

Mentor Michigan is a program of the Michigan Community Service Commission.  For more information visit www.mentormichigan.org.