In partnership with the Shelby County District Attorney General’s Office and the Memphis Grizzlies Charitable Foundation, the City of Memphis will launch the Mayor’s Mentoring Initiative Wednesday, October 3^rd at 2:30 p.m. in front of City Hall.

As part of the new mentoring initiative, city employees will be encouraged to serve as mentors to area youth, either through the District Attorney’s Mentoring Program or with one of the organizations that participates in the Grizzlies Mentoring Alliance.

“There are goals we work toward every single day – making sure our children finish high school and go to college, keeping kids away from guns and illegal activity, breaking the chains of intergenerational poverty – and mentors increase our chances of success with each and every one of those goals,” said Memphis Mayor A C Wharton, Jr. “We must tap into this city’s greatest asset: the people who live and give here. And we’re starting with our own employees.”

City divisions and departments will be urged to approve flextime to allow employees to serve as mentors during traditional work hours. City employees who sign up for the Mayor’s Mentoring Initiative will also be routinely recognized by the Mayor’s Office and the City of Memphis Division of Human Resources.

By partnering with both the District Attorney’s Office and the Grizzlies Charitable Foundation, the City hopes to provide employees with a broad range of experiences to choose from.

The District Attorney’s Mentoring Program offers an alternative to court proceedings for youth who are habitually truant. The youth essentially enter into a Court Order in which they agree to be matched with a designated mentor instead of facing prosecution.

“My office could handle truancy cases like every other crime. However, we see an opportunity in these situations to not only enforce the law but also enrich the life of a young person,” said Shelby County District Attorney Amy Weirich. “For a minimum investment of time, the City of Memphis employees can make an immeasurable difference in a young person’s life.”

The D.A.’s program works exclusively with middle school students, and each mentor is asked to interact with their student at least eight hours each month.

"In many instances, our children just need to hear an encouraging word or someone to explain it with a different point of view. That is mentoring,” said Memphis City Councilman Harold Collins.

The Grizzlies Mentoring Alliance includes local mentoring programs Girls, Inc., Memphis Athletic Ministries, Memphis PREP Program, Memphis City Schools' CONNECT Mentoring, New Ballet Ensemble & School, and Youth Villages, among others. After filling out a Grizzlies TEAM UP Interest form detailing their interests and availability, volunteers are paired with the organization that best suits them. Grizzlies' partners serve kids ages 10-18 and offer one-on-one, group, and team mentoring opportunities.

"Dozens of opportunities to mentor are found within our trusted Grizzlies Mentoring Alliance member programs. We'll match City employees with these programs based upon their interests and availability and work with our partners to ensure they have the training and support to start mentoring,” said Jenny Koltnow, executive director of the Grizzlies Foundation. “We hope to see this initiative connect more young people with mentors and inspire individuals and organizations throughout the city to get involved with youth mentoring."

The official launch will be held Wednesday, October 3^rd, at 2:30 p.m. outside of City Hall. During the event, employees will learn about both programs and will hear from students who are currently being mentored. The media is invited to attend.

Memphis Mayor A C Wharton, Jr. will receive the Democratic Municipal Officials (DMO) 2012 Susan Burgess Memorial Award today, September 5^th, at 3 p.m. in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Mayor is being awarded the designation for his commitment to improving public education.

“I’m humbled and honored to be chosen as the second recipient for the Susan Burgess Memorial Award, and I want to thank Memphis City Councilman Myron Lowery, a longtime DMO member, for nominating me,” said Mayor A C Wharton, Jr. “Last fall, when we were facing the very real possibility of a schools shutdown due to funding issues, I insisted we broker a compromise that allowed schools to open on time. Our priority has to be the education of our children.”

The Susan Burgess Memorial Award was established in 2011 to honor the late Susan Burgess, a former chair of the DMO and a longtime member of the Charlotte City Council. Memphis City Councilman Myron Lowery will also attend today’s ceremony.

“Susan Burgess was my friend, and Mayor Wharton embodies her spirit of providing strong leadership in support of public education,” said Councilman Lowery. “The challenges that urban areas face today can, and will, only be solved by providing a quality education to all of our citizens.”

“Mayor Wharton is an inspiring leader and, we think, an inspired choice to be the recipient of the 2012 Susan Burgess Memorial Award,” said Barbara Moore, executive director of the DMO. “The Mayor has demonstrated that he is committed to public education and, with programs such as Books from Birth and Memphis/Shelby Achieves, he has shown he’s committed to lifelong learning.”

Mayor Wharton will be presented with the award during the DMO Delegate Welcome Reception and Awards Ceremony at Emeril Lagasse’s E2 Restaurant, 135 Levine Avenue of the Arts, Suite 100. The ceremony will begin at 3 p.m. EST.