I currently have three organizations that I volunteer for. At the time, I didn\u2019t think I had the ability to any of these jobs, except maybe the last one mentioned below. But I stepped out of my comfort zone and never turned back.<\/p>\n
I started as a tutor approximately sixteen years ago for an organization called Action Centered Tutoring Services<\/a> (ACTS). ACTs provides tutoring and mentoring for children who reside in Springfield, MA from grades 1-5.\u00a0 Initially I was hesitant if I had the skills to tutor a child.\u00a0 It turns out if you ever had to do homework with your own children, you can be a tutor!<\/p>\n I was assigned my first student and the process was very challenging, but I survived and she thrived. As time went on, I\u2019ve tutored several other students. Each time the process for me got a little easier. However, there were two other students who are permanently stamped in my heart. One student, Jada, whom I tutored for two years.\u00a0 Jada struggled with math and hated being pulled out of her classroom to go into a special education room. When I used to ask her, \u201cwhat do you want to be when you grow up?\u201d she would answer, \u201csmart\u201d. This broke my heart, so I knew I had to do everything in my power to help her. We had some very creative sessions where I did everything I could to teach her math such using measuring cups as a demonstration. Jada began to better understand and apply the concepts she needed and vastly improved.\u00a0 While this program wasn\u2019t the sole reason for her growth, it was certainly a part of it.<\/p>\n My other student, Joyce, I started tutoring when she was in the fifth grade. Typically tutoring through ACTs ends in the fifth grade. However, we just kind of kept going with formal tutoring until she reached the tenth grade. Throughout the years, we\u2019ve had many conversations about good times and struggles in Joyce\u2019s home and school life. I was extremely honored when she asked me to speak at her sweet 16 and I\u2019ve attended many of her school events, including her high school graduation. From all the time spent, we\u2019ve forged a friendship that I will cherish forever.<\/p>\n For a few years, I took a role as a site director, which was a paid position. As rewarding as the job was, I missed the one-to-one of tutoring. So now I\u2019m back to that, just waiting for a student to be assigned to me. \u00a0And I\u2019m also proud to report that last year I joined the ACTS board of directors!<\/p>\n