Founded in 1904, Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) is the oldest and largest mentoring organization in the United States, serving more than 275,000 youth (ages 5�18) in 5,000 communities. National research has shown that the positive relationships between mentors and youth have a direct, measurable, and lasting impact. Youth who have been mentored are less likely to use drugs, drink alcohol, skip school, or engage in acts of violence. They have greater self-esteem, improved academic performance, and better relationships with friends and family.

BBBS�s one-to-one mentoring focuses on meeting children�s basic developmental needs and helping at-risk youth overcome challenges. A mentor spends an average of 4 hours per week with a youth who needs a supportive adult. Guided by rigorous standards, trained personnel carefully coordinate each match. Professional caseworkers assist mentors, children, and families.

OJJDP Support

Since 1998, OJJDP has allocated more than $23 million in earmarked funding to BBBS. OJJDP�s $6 million funding for fiscal year 2004 is helping BBBS operate and expand services at regional training centers, award subgrants to affiliates for school- and faith-based mentoring, pilot a new service delivery model, and develop a management information system for local affiliates.

OJJDP funding helps BBBS provide training, technical assistance, and other support to more than 200 local affiliates. By backing efforts to implement effective practices and programs and enhance regional development centers, OJJDP furthers BBBS�s goal of having 1 million mentors by 2010.

Centennial Celebration

This mentoring promotion from OJJDP appeared in a recent issue of Vista, the nation�s oldest dual-language magazine serving the Hispanic community. Vista has a national circulation of 1 million.

OJJDP congratulates BBBS as it celebrates 100 years of helping children. The year-long centennial campaign is reaching out to past BBBS participants around the country. OJJDP provided funding to support several centennial activities, including the following:

	A national search to locate and register thousands of former BBBS participants, and a campaign to reunite former big brothers and sisters with their little brothers and sisters.
	Collection of participants� personal stories, and publication of a book highlighting 100 stories from the first 100 years.
	A fundraising initiative to recruit and cultivate corporate sponsors and private donors.

The centennial celebration featured a special 2-day event in New York City on June 15�16, 2004. Through the Juvenile Justice Telecommunications Assistance Project at Eastern Kentucky University, OJJDP provided live satellite broadcasts, Internet cybercasts, and edited tapes of selected anniversary activities. For additional information about Big Brothers Big Sisters and the centennial celebration, visit www.bbbsa.org.

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention is a component of the Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice, and the Office for Victims of Crime.

News @ a Glance is OJJDP�s bimonthly newsletter, bringing you up-to-date notices of agency activities, recent publications, funding opportunities, and upcoming events�with an emphasis on providing quick access to online sources for publications and other resources. Let us know what types of features would be most useful to you (visit askjj.ncjrs.org). Subscribe to and receive OJJDP News @ a Glance electronically so you can be sure to receive every issue. Visit the OJJDP home page at www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ojjdp and click on �subscribe� to News @ a Glance in the �Get Information� box.

Office of Justice Programs · Partnerships for Safer Communities · www.ojp.usdoj.gov