A new study confirms what many people volunteering as tutors and mentors already know: The practice of American adults mentoring children and teenagers unites people.

The study, “The Power of Relationships: How and Why American Adults Step Up to Mentor the Nation’s Youth,” by the National Mentoring Partnership, gives a snapshot of who mentors, their characteristics, why they do so, and what they hope to achieve. “To help youth become better educated” was the top response — 72 percent of all mentors listed that as a motivation.

Some facts and figures:

• A quarter of U.S. adults are currently engaged in mentoring relationships.
• 73 percent of mentors are mentoring youth of a different ethnicity.
• Two-thirds of adults consider it highly important for young people to have mentors.
• When employers support youth mentoring, 73 percent of employees report strong career satisfaction.
• 83 percent of Americans support the government investing in youth mentoring.
• 44 percent of Americans aren’t currently serving as mentors but are willing to consider it.
• 18- to 29-year-olds are more than twice as likely to report having had a mentor in their life than those over 50. Almost half of today’s young adults say they have had a mentor.

The entire report is available at this link.