I have always been a big fan of our youth mentoring programs. And now President Obama is a fan, too.
It’s National Youth Mentor Month, and I’m proud to say that the Michigan 4-H Youth Mentoring Program was selected to represent 4-H Youth Mentoring nationwide at a celebration that was held yesterday, Jan. 20, at the White House. 4-H National Headquarters, the Corporation for National and Community Service and the White House selected Michigan 4-H Youth Mentoring to attend the event in Washington, D.C., because of its broad approach to mentoring and its effective use of planned youth mentoring as a delivery vehicle for 4-H positive youth development outcomes in more than 30 counties.
Michigan State University Extension sent mentor Andrew Knight and mentee Ryan Brott, 14, and Ryan’s mother, Dawn, to visit the White House. Ottawa 4-H educator Lisa Bottomley and coordinator Laura Schleede accompanied the trio.
Ryan and Andrew were matched through the Journey 4-H Youth Mentoring program nearly a year ago. Ryan, an 8th-grader at Holland West Middle School lives in Holland, Mich., with his mother and siblings. Andrew is a 25-year-old Grand Valley State University student from West Olive, Mich. Ryan was referred to Journey 4-H when he was struggling in school and had made some poor choices. Andrew, who had learned about the program through his criminal justice class, stepped in as a positive adult male role model. The two are a perfect match—both are passionate about sports and the outdoors. And the best part? Since they were matched last February, Ryan has improved his grades and almost made the honor roll this past semester!
Lisa and Laura have already shared some of their photos on social media sites. We’ll post links to those on the MSUE Spotlight blog as they become available, so keep checking back!
