Providing support to beginning teachers is essential for two reasons: the need to retain qualified beginning teachers and the need for beginning teachers to become effective practitioners as soon as possible. Induction and mentoring programs have been effective in ameliorating some of the causes--including lack of support--of the high attrition rate among beginning teachers. These programs also help beginning teachers become more effective practitioners sooner. This study seeks to determine if there is a significant difference in the perception of the amount of support received among first-year teachers with (a) a mentor assigned through the school district's mentor teacher program, (b) a mentor assigned by their principals, and (c) no assigned mentor. All first-year teachers in a school district serving almost sixty thousand students were asked to participate in this study. Some of these teachers teach in schools with high-achieving, high socioeconomic populations, while others teach in schools comprised of at-risk populations. The district encompasses fifty-nine elementary schools, one special education school, eleven middle schools, and thirteen high schools. English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers were included among the teachers in this district. This population was selected because it is representative of first-year teachers in the school district for the 2001-02 school year. The population consisted of all first-year teachers: those with and those without an assigned mentor. The study suggests that mentor programs should place more emphasis in their training for mentors on the importance of mentors (a) planning lessons and units with their mentees, and (b) observing and being observed by their mentees and conferencing with the mentees afterward. It is recommended that planning and observations become a mandatory part of mentoring programs.