During January, National Mentoring Month, there's an effort underway to recruit more mentors and match them with Hoosier kids.   Bill Stanczykiewicz, President and CEO of the Indiana Youth Institute says mentoring takes many forms including one-on-one like Big Brothers, Big Sisters or small groups or teams like 100 Black Men. 

Stanczkiewicz also says "There is an opportunity for employers to give their people paid time off to mentor.  Corporations like Do It Best, Old National Bank and others do this" adding, "basically, it could be as little as a half-hour a week that gets joined to the lunchtime and then is used at a school to mentor."

The Indiana Youth Institute president says there are many benefits to mentoring "Certainly the student benefits from the mentor, the volunteer sees a positive difference in their life and for the employer, it is great employee relations, it is great public relations and that can add up to a positive difference on the bottom line."
Stanczkiewicz acknowledges that the current economy has limited bonuses and raises and that companies are "still looking for positive ways to interact with their employees and of course, community service, volunteering are big ways" to do that.  He adds that Indiana Mentoring Partnership and their website; a better hour.org has recruited 2400 mentors statewide since it was founded in 2009."
To find a mentoring program in Northwest Indiana enter your zip code at the bottom of their home page at:  http://www.iyi.org/indiana-mentoring-partnership.aspx.


Bill Stanczykiewicz, president and CEO Indiana Youth Institute at Radio One studios.
(photos courtesy iyi.org and Radio One Communications)
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