I joined the VMP Board as an outgrowth of my work in developing prisoner community reentry programs across Virginia. Ex-offenders are going home to some of the nation’s poorest neighborhoods, where they often lack stable social bonds and support networks and where there are few services to help them restart their lives.

Studies tell us that the lack of a stable home life or a consistent positive adult presence can lead to the development of youth violence and aggression. In fact, research suggests that in the absence of such things, children are more likely to develop internalizing problems like depression and externalizing problems such as aggression — placing these youth at greater risk for violence and school failure.

Therefore, there has been a renewed call for the creation and implementation of mentoring programs. Specifically, mentoring can develop social and emotional competence (which is also a tool to prevent bullying), as well as build self-esteem and self-confidence.

Effective mentoring programs can increase school attendance as well as school engagement. Therefore, not only does mentoring address issues related to youth violence, it can also serve as yet another tool in efforts to improve outcomes for students in America’s public education system.

Virginia Mentoring Partnership is an independent nonprofit organization founded in 1993 to provide training and support to mentors and mentoring programs across Virginia. Today, VMP promotes effective mentoring in Virginia by increasing the capacity of mentoring programs, developing new programs, and advocating for resources to support the mentoring field.

VMP estimates that more than 35,000 young people have mentors in Virginia as a result of its efforts for the past 23 years. But the need is still great.

The key to addressing this need is funding. I hope you will join us in meeting the need. Thank you for your contribution!