California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Sept. 16 announced a statewide initiative calling on 10,000 young men to mentor and serve in their communities, building on an executive order he signed earlier this summer targeting mental health challenges and rising suicide rates among boys and men.
At Florin High School in Sacramento, Newsom and state leaders unveiled the California Men’s Service Challenge, a partnership with schools, nonprofits, and sports organizations to increase the number of male mentors, tutors, and coaches.
Josh Fryday, who leads the governor’s Office of Service and Community Engagement, said the effort aims to address a shortage of male role models at a time when “suicide rates among young men are growing” and men are less likely than women to attend college, hold steady jobs, or volunteer.
“We are sending a very clear and a very powerful message to our young men: We need you,” Fryday said, urging participants to sign up at mensservicechallenge.com.
Speakers from mentoring groups, including Mentor California and Improve Your Tomorrow, described long waiting lists for boys seeking mentors.
“What we know is that currently, right now, one out of every three young people, growing up without a caring adult or person that they can call a mentor,” Marcus Strother, executive director of Mentor California, said.
“What we know … is that a young person that is mentored will most likely succeed in school. They will most likely find their career trajectory. They will most likely step into leadership roles. And what we also know is that young men who know that they are loved, that they are seen, that they are heard. Well, at the end of the day, they just do better.”
Michael Lynch, CEO of Improve Your Tomorrow, emphasized the urgency of the movement. “What we see right now across society, converging economic and technological factors, societal messaging around masculinity, more time spent online, as the governor said, and less time spent building community, have caused deep issues amongst boys and men.”
Lynch further said, “For young men and boys, the revolt, the result of those circumstances can be seen in rising rates of suicide and drug abuse. This is why it is so important for male mentors to be able to step up to the challenge, to be able to serve, to be able to impact a life.”
The event also highlighted personal stories, including from program alumni such as Adam Allen, who described overcoming housing and food insecurity in high school with the support of mentors and later returning to serve in the same community.
Newsom said the initiative reflects a broader state strategy to confront what he called an “epidemic of loneliness” and to expand opportunities for young men to feel seen, valued, and connected.
“We have a crisis in this country, of men and boys, and for decades, candidly, we’ve neglected it because some of us have been scared to enter into the fight,” Newsom said. “Because somehow, we felt it was a zero-sum game. That somehow, if we’re focusing on the needs of men and boys, somehow, we’re taking away from our advocacy around gender equality.”
“But it’s not a zero-sum game. And this crisis has become a crisis, not just for men and boys, but for women and girls as well,” Newsom continued.
The challenge builds on an executive order Newsom issued July 30, directing agencies to develop suicide prevention strategies, expand behavioral health access, and increase male representation in teaching and counseling roles. At the time, Newsom said the state must show “every young man that he matters and there’s a path for him of purpose, dignity, work, and real connection.”
The governor’s office cited statistics showing suicide rates for men aged 15 to 44 are three to four times higher than for women, and male college enrollment and completion have dropped significantly over the past decade. Officials said expanding mentoring and service opportunities are key to reversing those trends.
“Today, we’re celebrating a success,” Newsom added. “We’re celebrating leadership. We’re celebrating in the spirit that the superintendent … and others have expanded, expanded on the spirit of love, of relationships, of being seen, of being heard.”
