2015 Greater Washington DC Area State of Mentoring: A Report Assessing the Current State of Mentoring for Young People in Our Region

According to a new study conducted jointly by the United Way of the National Capital Area (United Way NCA) and Deloitte, the Washington, D.C. metro-area may be falling short when it comes to mentoring. According to the Greater Washington, D.C. State of Mentoring Report, 70% of mentoring organizations throughout the National Capital Community responded that they "did not have enough mentors to effectively provide quality mentoring services to young people in their communities."The report also found that the two most prevalent challenges facing mentoring organizations throughout the National Capital Community include funding (72%) and recruitment of enough volunteer mentors (65%). In addition to funding and volunteer mentor recruitment, the study also shows additional challenges facing mentoring organizations servicing the Greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. Some of those additional challenges include:58% of organizations noted that they have a wait list of young people who are looking for mentors.48% attributed this wait list to a lack of volunteers signing up to be mentors.Only 51% of mentoring relationships in the Greater Washington, D.C. area lasted more than two years, compared to 69% nationally