WHEN:

Wednesday, October 25, 2006

11:30 a.m. Media Availability with Dr. Susan Weinberger, Richard Rowe, and First Gentleman Mulhern

9:00 a.m. First Gentleman Daniel G. Mulhern, Welcome

9:15 a.m. Dr. Mentor Keynote Address

12:00 p.m. Richard Rowe Keynote Address

9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Conference in Session

WHERE:

Michigan State University Union - Second Floor Ballroom

Grand River Avenue between Abbott and MAC

East Lansing, Michigan 48824

WHO:

First Gentleman Daniel G. Mulhern will be releasing for the first time the newest figures from Wave IV the Mentor Michigan Census:

Mentoring organizations are serving 11,709 more children today than in September 2004.
An estimated 35,000 children were mentored in the past year-that's an increase of more than 4,000 matches since last year's census.
On August 31, 2006 there were 5,000 more mentors than in August 2005. There are 7,274 more mentors since September 2004.
There are 4,081 children on waiting lists with mentoring programs (as of August 31, 2006.)
Wave IV of the census had the highest response rate from mentoring organizations since its inception - 137 mentoring organizations managing 265 different programs. The Census achieved a 58% response rate.

Dr. Susan G. Weinberger (Dr. Mentor) is an international consultant on mentoring and the founder and president of the Mentor Consulting Group. She has been recognized for her expertise in establishing, maintaining, and evaluating school, corporate, and community-based mentoring programs and school-to-work initiatives. Her work has been published widely and the program she designed has been replicated in 48 states, as well as Bermuda and Canada. Dr. Weinberger's latest book, Mentoring A Movement: My Personal Journey is an account of her experiences over more than two decades as a pioneer in the field of mentoring. She has also had seven other books published.

Richard Rowe is the president/CEO of the African American Male Leadership Institute, Inc., and his consulting firm, The Leadership Circle. With more than 18 years of experience in the field of mentoring, he has trained hundreds of volunteers, educators, and organizations. He has lectured nationally on issues related to male leadership and responsibility, recruiting and screening African American male volunteers, and developing school and faith-based mentoring programs. Mr. Rowe is the co-host of a weekly radio program on Morgan State University's radio station, which provides a forum for candid dialogue about the plight of black men and their families. He serves on a number of community and youth development boards, and he is a contributing writer to several local and national publications and web sites, including Black Parenting Magazine, A Good Black Man.Com, The Journal of Black Manhood, and Black Fatherhood.

400 mentoring professionals from across Michigan

WHAT:

At Michigan's Premiere Mentoring Conference, 400 representatives from mentoring programs across the state will join in lively discussions, keynote addresses, and workshops to learn best practices and gain new skills so they can implement high-quality mentoring programs for children. The conference is hosted by Mentor Michigan. Mentor Michigan, led by Governor Jennifer M. Granholm and First Gentleman Daniel G. Mulhern, is working to ensure that all of our youth have ongoing relationships with stable, caring individuals. Together with mentoring programs throughout the state, it recruits mentors, develops partners and champions, advocates for mentoring issues and standards, provides resources and training, and recognizes the accomplishments of mentors and the organizations that support them. Mentor Michigan is a program of the Michigan Community Service Commission.