he Government of Alberta made a $200,000 investment to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Calgary and Area on April 25 to provide more students in Calgary with the BBBS peer mentoring programs they need to become more resilient and successful.

In partnership with the Muslim Council of Calgary, our programming will ensure youth have an accessible, healthy outlet to discuss their mental health and stressors in their community. By forging a meaningful connection with a mentor, students will find support in their school setting without needing to look elsewhere and will be connected to additional mental health and addiction resources when necessary.

“We’re committed to matching children and youth facing adversity with a caring mentor and creating what we call developmental relationships. It’s a critical intervention that helps strengthen the social-emotional learning of young people,” said Ken Lima-Coelho, President and CEO, Big Brothers Big Sisters Calgary and Area.

BBBS understands that culturally sensitive conversations are instrumental to meaningful connection, and will actively seek out mentors who understand and are sensitive to the complexities of mental health in the Muslim community, along with the intersecting identities Muslim youth navigate every day.

Our in-school mentoring programs have seen incredible results. Last year, 81% of children and youth reported improvement in one or more social-emotional learning skills, 98% believe they make good life choices, and 87% have strong social networks.

BBBS currently serves 709 students with our mentorship program. Our partnership with the Muslim Council of Calgary will allow us to reach 150 more students. We will be employing 90 additional mentors to help us to make a tangible, long-term impact on mental health in the Muslim community.

BBBS extends our gratitude to Children’s Services Minister Mickey Amery and the Government of Alberta for investing in BBBS to expand mentorship programs for youth.