In less than four years, AT&T employees provided students with one million hours of mentoring, here in Illinois and across the globe. Employee mentors participate in AT&T’s Aspire Mentoring Academy, which was launched in the fall of 2012 with the objective of providing one million hours of mentoring to students by its employees before the end of 2016. Reaching this milestone nearly one year early is a testament to the commitment and enthusiasm of AT&T employees. As mentors, employees connect with students to help them discover their passions and potential. The experience has a positive impact on both the adults and students. In Illinois, AT&T employees are connected with best-in-class nonprofits that support students who will benefit the most from mentoring. Since the launch of Aspire Mentoring Academy in the fall of 2012, 14,166 students were provided 79,027 mentoring hours in Illinois.

One in three young people do not have a mentor when growing up, according to recent research commissioned by MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership and supported by AT&T. The 1 million hour milestone is just the beginning of AT&T’s efforts to close this gap. The next phase of Aspire Mentoring Academy will use the power of technology to connect with even more students in more places around the world. AT&T is teaming up with innovative organizations, such as Nepris, iCouldBe and We Teach Science that use technology to provide mentorship opportunities. These organizations will help connect more students and mentors for whom in-person mentoring is not possible.