HELP USA’s MENTORING INITIATIVE, MENTORING USA, GOES NATIONAL
Providing One-to-one Onsite Mentoring for Kids across America

New York, NY- HELP USA’s Mentoring USA (MUSA) has announced its expanded support for several pivotal new programs that provide at risk youth with mentoring services in challenging communities across the nation.

    
Through these new programs, MUSA will be promoting the four pillars of its curriculum, which include healthy lifestyle and self-esteem, financial literacy, the arts, and the BRAVE anti-bullying initiative (Bias-Related Anti-Violence Education), designed to improve awareness and respect for diversity in America.

“We are very pleased to be expanding our influential programs,” said Stephen Powell, Executive Director of Mentoring USA. “Mentoring USA is widely renowned for delivering quality resources to millions of children who face challenges every day. Especially during anti-bullying month, we are happy to extend our curriculum to students all other the nation, teaching tolerance from New York to Los Angeles.”

 

MUSA will play an organizational role in the 2012 National Mentoring Summit, which brings together national youth mentoring organizations and government, civic, research and corporate leaders to evaluate the best practices and discuss the future of quality youth mentoring. This year’s National Mentoring Summit included Michelle Obama, who stressed the value and importance of mentorship in every child’s life.

MUSA in further expanding their reach across the country has aligned with Viacom and MENTOR to support a new branch of one-to-one on site mentoring in Los Angeles, where employees of BET will serve as mentors to under-served youth. The program will give students growing up in challenging Los Angeles neighborhoods the support and guidance they need to build positive plans for their future.

Additionally, MUSA has pledged its support to the Illinois Mentoring Partnership in Chicago, scheduled to launch on October 27th, 2011.

 “We have always had ambitions of making a mark in children’s lives ever since our establishment in 1987, and we are making excellent headway,” said Mrs. Matilda Cuomo, Founder of Mentoring USA. “There are millions of children who often have no guidance and no support, and often struggle with poverty, drug abuse, and difficult home lives. For them, it is hard to envision a life outside of this challenging environment. If we can supply just one person to remind them of their talents, their capabilities and their potential for greatness, it would be a wonderful thing to help them envision a positive life beyond what they currently experience. That’s what Mentoring USA is all about, a one-on-one supportive relationship.”

Mentoring USA, launched as the nation's first state-wide, school-based one-to-one mentoring program provides one-to-one mentoring programs that enable children to achieve their potential.  Mentoring USA has provided mentors for more than 5,000 children. It was founded by former First Lady of New York, Mrs. Matilda Cuomo, who has championed this cause for the past twenty-five years. Its mission is to create sustained and supportive mentor relationships for children in need by building an enduring bond between a mentor and a mentee through which the mentee can find personal and academic support for his or her individual needs.

 

 

Ali Sirota: asirota@globalstrategygroup.com / 212.260.8813

Lawrence Cann: lcann@helpusa.org / 212.400.7044