Recognizing January 2026 as "National Mentoring Month".

This resolution officially recognizes January 2026 as "National Mentoring Month" to highlight the profound impact of mentoring relationships. Its primary goals are to raise public awareness, celebrate the dedicated individuals who serve as mentors, and encourage institutions to integrate quality mentoring into their policies and programs. Mentoring is acknowledged for fostering positive life skills, bolstering academic achievement, supporting career exploration, and nurturing youth leadership development across various settings. The resolution emphasizes that effective mentoring significantly benefits underserved and vulnerable populations, improving mental health and social-emotional well-being, and serves as a crucial component of juvenile justice and violence prevention efforts. It notes that despite these benefits, a significant "mentoring gap" exists, with many young people lacking meaningful adult guidance. Therefore, the resolution promotes the establishment and expansion of quality mentoring programs nationwide and supports initiatives to close this gap, ensuring more young people have the tools to lead healthy and productive lives and reach their full potential.