Gov. John Carney signed a proclamation Friday declaring January 2023 as Mentoring Month in Delaware.
Carney said coming out of the pandemic he’s making mentorship a priority for Delaware’s young people.
Joined by education and mentoring stakeholders for the signing, Carney said children across the state are in need of mentors.
“The key part is we have lots of committed organizations and mentors that are doing the work. Do we have as many as we did at the peak several years ago? Probably not. But that’s a goal we can set for ourselves.”
Carney said he was inspired by former Governor and now Senator Tom Carper’s commitment to bolstering mentorship throughout the First State.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Delaware reports there are not enough mentors to meet the need with a waiting list of around 150 young people.
“We are doing a lot of marketing throughout the state. We have a community engagement director who targets specific parts of the state and community to ensure we are getting the mentors we need for the young persons we have on our waiting list,” Executive Director Anya Lindsey-Jenkins said.
She added they are making progress, however. Before the pandemic, that waiting list was more than 300.
