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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
BELLEVUE SCHOOLS NEEDS MORE MENTORS FOR AT-RISK YOUTHS
Bellevue-based VIBES to hold National Mentoring Month celebration at Crossroads Shopping Center on Jan. 15
BELLEVUE, Wash., Jan. 10, 2003 -- January is National Mentoring Month, and the call for more people to be mentors could
not come at a better time, say leaders with Volunteers in Bellevue's Education System (VIBES). VIBES and the Bellevue
School District need hundreds of mentors for students of all ages, especially for at-risk youths and children who
speak English as a second language.
To celebrate its volunteers and recruit more mentors, VIBES is holding a celebration of National Mentoring Month on
January 15th, from 12:00 - 1:30 p.m., at Center Stage of the Crossroads Shopping Center. Current mentors and students
will be on hand to share their experiences.
The celebration is open to the public, and anyone interested in learning more about VIBES or volunteer opportunities is
encouraged to drop by.
"I. . . urge our citizens, neighborhoods, and businesses to support our youth by becoming actively involved in mentoring
programs," said Bellevue Mayor Connie B. Marshall in a recent proclamation, declaring January National Mentoring Month in
Bellevue.
A partnership between the City of Bellevue, the Bellevue Schools Foundation and the Bellevue School District, VIBES
places volunteers in Bellevue Schools as one-on-one mentors, literacy/math tutors and classroom volunteers.
Many of VIBES mentors and volunteers come from Eastside companies, such as Microsoft.
Hung Nguyen, a software developer at Microsoft Corp., has been a VIBES mentor for the past 10 years. He became a mentor
after reading about the VIBES program in an internal Microsoft newsletter. VIBES matched him with a seven-year-old boy
who had just emigrated to the U.S. from Vietnam, where Hung was also born.
"We met for an hour every week, and I helped him with his homework, played games with him, communicated in Vietnamese
to him, and was an adult friend," Hung recalled.
Hung's student graduated from Sammamish High School this past June, so VIBES will be matching him with another student
in Bellevue.
"I became a mentor because I love being with children, and because I believed then and still believe that children are
our future," said Hung. "If you have an hour or two a week, and you enjoy being with children, this would be a great
way for you to make a difference, because, I think it really does take a village to raise a child."
With more than 60 languages spoken by students in the Bellevue School District, VIBES is in special need of tutors or
mentors that speak languages other than English, particularly Vietnamese, Korean, Chinese, Russian and Spanish, among
many others.
"We are fortunate to live in such a diverse and educated community, where people from all walks of life and backgrounds
can help our students be more successful in school and in life," said Sherry Ladd, executive director for the Bellevue
Schools Foundation, which provides funding to VIBES and other mentoring programs in the Bellevue School District.
For more information about VIBES or the Bellevue Schools Foundation or to make a donation, please contact the BSF at
425-456-4199 or email info@bsfdn.org.
About the Bellevue Schools Foundation (BSF)
The Bellevue Schools Foundation is a powerful partnership between business and community leaders, parents and members
of the education community. BSF was created in 1979 by a concerned group of parents and community leaders, who wanted
to ensure quality education for Bellevue's children despite the economic challenges facing the school district.
Its mission remains consistent: to promote and help fund the best possible learning opportunities for all students in
Bellevue Public Schools. During its 23-year history, the BSF has raised $6.6 million for programs that reach over
12,000 students every year. For 2002-2003, the Foundation's fundraising goal is $895,000. It will help to fund
district-wide curriculum innovations, expand professional development, support mentoring programs and implement a wide
range of programs to meet students' special needs across the district's 28 schools.
As a private, non-profit organization, the BSF depends on individual and corporate donors in order to fund its school programs.
In partnership with the Bellevue School District, the Parent-Teacher-Student Associations and school educators and
administrators, the Bellevue Schools Foundation helps Bellevue's public school students achieve excellence.
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Media Contact:
Margaret Dawson
The Silver Company (for Bellevue Schools Foundation)
Tel: 206-624-0388
Cel: 206-355-6872
margaret@thesilvercompany.com
or
Ann Grometstein
Bellevue Schools Foundation
Tel: 425-456-4199
ann@bsfdn.org
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Last updated Wednesday, March 17th, 2004.
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