Our Outcomes

While seemingly a simple concept, Big Brothers Big Sisters brand of mentoring has a powerful and compelling impact as documented by, "Making a Difference, an Impact Study of Big Brothers Big Sisters," which was performed by Public/Private Ventures.  The study compared nearly 1,000 children, half of them paired with a Big Brother or Big Sister, and half on our waiting.  Of these children, those paired with a Big Brother or Big Sister were:

• 46% less likely to begin using illegal drugs, with minority Little Brothers and Little Sisters 70% less likely
• 27% less likely to begin using alcohol, with minority Little Brothers and Little Sisters 50% less likely
• 52% less likely to skip school
• 33% less likely to hit someone

Locally, we have additionally found that:

• 85% of our Littles have shown an increase in their self-confidence
• 83% if our Littles trust their Bigs more than they did a year ago
• 77% of our Littles improved their grades in school
• 74% of our Littles have a better attitude about school
• 71% of our Littles improved their relationships with family and friends

A study conducted by Harris Interactive^® on behalf of Big Brothers Big Sisters fiound adults mentored as children through Big Brothers Big Sisters to have the following long term outcomes:

·        Alumni were 75% more likely than non-alumni to have received a four-year college degree (28% of alumni vs. 16% of non-alumni).

·        Alumni were 39% more likely than non-alumni to have current household incomes of $75,000 or higher (46% of alumni vs. 33% of non-alumni).

·        A majority of alumni are extremely or very satisfied with their relationships to friends (72%), family (65%) and spouses (62%).  Fewer non-alumni report the same level of satisfaction (46%, 50% and 40%, respectively).

·        Approximately two in three (64%) alumni are extremely or very satisfied with life compared to just over one in three (35%) non-alumni.

·        A majority of alumni (62%) perceive themselves to have achieved a higher level of success than their peers who were not involved in Big Brothers Big Sisters. Furthermore, this is twice as many as the 31% of non-alumni who report being more successful than other people they grew up with.

·        Adult Littles are more likely than non-alumni to be engaged in their community over the past 12 months, particularly  when it comes to volunteering (52% vs 35%, respectively) and holding a leadership role in an organization working on an issue (29% vs. 16%, respectively).