NYC is implementing a mentoring initiative in 400 high schools that hopes to serve 40,000 students a year by 2022, Mayor Bill de Blasio and Chief Service Officer Paula Gavin announced Thursday.
About 9,000 adult mentors volunteer now; the city would like to increase that number to 14,000. Participants, who are asked to meet with a student four to six times per year and keep in touch monthly by phone or email, must consent to a criminal background check.
At-risk youth with mentors are 37 percent less likely to skip a class, 81 percent more likely to participate regularly in sports or extracurricular activities and 55 percent more likely to enroll in college, according to the City Hall, which will be reaching out to groups, associations, colleges, churches, businesses and city employees, to solicit more mentoring volunteers.
A PSA has been launched to encourage New Yorkers to mentor. More information on mentoring can be obtained by visiting nyc.gov/service.
