iMentor, a New York City-based non-profit committed to improving the lives of high school students from underserved communities through innovative, technology-enabled mentoring, announced today that it has been awarded a $200,000 grant from MetLife Foundation.

iMentor will use the funds to pilot partnerships with affiliates of two large national youth organizations: Big Brothers Big Sisters ("BBBS") and Junior Achievement ("JA"). The grant will help local chapters of BBBS and JA engage 400 low-income youth in supportive mentoring relationships using iMentor Interactive ("iMi"), iMentor's proprietary web-based platform designed to manage online and in-person mentoring programs. iMi provides advisory services to help organizations scale and launch their own mentoring programs.

Pilot programs will initially be launched in collaboration with BBBS of Southeastern Pennsylvania and JA of New York. iMentor will later pilot the program in two additional sites - one BBBS and one JA.

"We are pleased to have received this recognition from MetLife Foundation and are honored to be partnering with such established organizations as Big Brothers Big Sisters and Junior Achievement," said Mike O'Brien, Chief Executive Officer of iMentor. "This partnership offers great potential to significantly narrow the mentoring gap by increasing collaboration and by bringing innovative and effective strategies to these well-recognized programs. By supporting national iMi partnerships, MetLife Foundation is helping to transform the lives of thousands of young people across the country."

"Mentoring is a vital part of young people's development," said Dennis White, president and CEO of MetLife Foundation. "We are pleased to help iMentor expand its technology-based mentoring model in partnership with Big Brothers Big Sisters and JA, who share MetLife Foundation's and iMentor's commitment to helping young people achieve their potential."

iMi is a pioneering social enterprise launched as an extension of iMentor's mission that allows schools and nonprofits to create or expand high-impact mentoring programs based on iMentor's proven program model and curriculum. With a combination of innovative technology and comprehensive programmatic support from iMi, partner organizations are well-equipped to manage mentoring programs that reach the level of quality of the iMentor NYC program, regardless of whether they are launching their mentoring program for the first time or enhancing a mentoring program that has served young people and volunteers for many years.

About iMentor
iMentor's mission is to improve the lives of young people from underserved communities through innovative, technology based approaches to mentoring. iMentor has created a two-part model to increase the impact and scalability of the traditional mentoring model: i) iMentorNYC is a direct service, high school-based mentoring program operating in New York City with a focus on advancing mentees' academic and career success, and ii) iMentor Interactive is a fee-for-service, web-based mentoring platform sold to schools and youth development organizations to bolster the quality of mentoring programs or create new ones. Since 1999, iMentor has matched and supported more than 7,000 one-to-one mentoring relationships in New York City. Launched in 2008, iMentor Interactive currently supports more than 60 mentoring programs enrolling 4,500 mentor-mentee pairs in 20 states. For additional information related to iMentor, please visit www.imentor.org.

In July 2010, iMentor was selected as a grantee in the first ever federal Social Innovation Fund. For additional information on the Social Innovation Fund, please visit www.nationalservice.gov.

About MetLife Foundation
MetLife Foundation was established by MetLife in 1976 to carry on its longstanding tradition of corporate contributions and community involvement. Grants support health, education, civic and cultural programs. In youth development, the Foundation funds initiatives that promote mentoring and increase constructive activities and safe places for young people, particularly during out-of-school time. For more information about the Foundation, visit www.metlife.org.

iMentor

iMentor

iMentor is a high-impact, school-based nonprofit organization whose mission is to improve the lives of young people from underserved communities through innovative, technology-based approaches to mentoring. Created in 1999 by John Griffin (founder of Blue Ridge Capital) and two public interest lawyers (Richard Buery and Matt Klein), iMentor began with 49 students in a single school in the South Bronx. Now entering our 11th year, iMentor has matched and supported over 7,000 mentor-mentee pairs in New York City alone. We also serve over 4,500 youth across the country through our pioneering social enterprise, iMentor Interactive (iMi). iMi is a strategic advisory service and web-based mentoring platform sold to schools and youth development organizations to bolster the quality of their existing mentoring programs or to create new ones. NYC serves as the laboratory where we develop and refine our model, and iMi is the outlet for national demand.

More from iMentor