“She seems to have a renewed interest in math. She was excited about coming each week.”
“I really notice the increased confidence and positive attitude about math. I feel if she didn’t have this, she would have fallen behind, worried more, and not had as positive experience in starting high school.”
“My son had become more inquisitive about what career options are available to him. With the tutor and college setting it has made him think more about his future.”
“The IUE tutoring program has helped my child strengthen the math deficits she faced and now has a foundation on which to build upon.”
“My daughter loves coming here; this has been an awesome asset to the community!!!”
“This was her very first year getting an A in math. I’m sure the summer tutoring helped her esteem. Thank you for having such a great program.”
“I’m so happy that this program exists! As math and other subjects get harder I hope that this program can get offered during school- I’m willing to bring my daughter for the additional help. You are an awesome team here!!! Thank you!”
These comments came from parents of students tutored in the second year of Summer Tutoring 2016 on the IU East Campus, at the Center for Service-Learning, located in the Campus Library in Hayes Hall.
Fourteen college students helped 38 young students with one-to-one tutoring, in 245 sessions over the course of 9 weeks.
Parents were so satisfied with results after the first 2015 Summer Tutoring program, they requested that math tutoring continue throughout the school year. One of these parents told us about her daughter’s dramatic improvement: “She is now VOLUNTEERING answers and to go to the board in class and she understands it! This is major! Last fall, she was failing tests, getting homework wrong and scared to ask for help. Now, she makes A’s on tests and received an A on a Progress Report!” Her daughter reported, “She [my tutor] helped me with homework and getting an A on my test. Anything I didn’t understand, she took the time to help me.”
Tutor Savannah Davis (left), and student
Savannah Davis, a senior Biochemistry major, is an invaluable member of the Math Counts! Team. In the summer she tutored at least five 8th-9th grade students every week. Teaching Algebra for this age group has become her specialty, and she is the tutor we go to for her unique ability to mentor, develop relationships, teach challenging math skills, and offer herself as a model of a successful female college student in a STEM field.
In Fall 2015, as parents requested tutoring during the school year, area school principals and CIS Coordinators contacted the Center for Service-Learning to request academic assistance in math. In an attempt to meet these needs, the Center for Service-Learning applied for and received a generous IU East Chancellor’s Innovation grant to afford a stipend for the skilled college students who served as math tutors. The official Math Counts! Program began in February 2016, with tutoring at the IU East campus after school, and at a number of schools in the area, including Richmond High school, Connersville High School, Dennis Middle School, and Hibberd Early College Academy.
Trevor Boram, tutor in red shirt, and Richmond High School student, at IU East
The first Math Counts! Tutor, Trevor Boram is pursuing a B.S. in Mathematics and a B.S. in Biochemistry with a minor in Biophysics, and he has plans of attending graduate school to obtain a Ph.D. in Biochemistry. Trevor first tutored at Richmond High school, working with students who had previously failed a course and helping them pass the course in order to graduate. Then, he signed up as a tutor for the 2015 Summer Tutoring program on the IU East Campus, answering the need for tutors in upper-level math. One of the summer students asked Trevor to continue tutoring him in the fall and throughout the spring semester. This student said, “When I took Pre-Calculus the first time, I ended up not passing the course, but after working with Trevor, I had passed the course with a B+.” Further, after Trevor’s tutoring and mentoring, this same student was accepted into college at IUPUI and Ball State.Trevor continues to tutor with Math Counts!, teaching such subjects as AP Chemistry, AP Calculus, Pre-Calculus, as well as Geometry and Algebra.
Cassidy Clouse, tutor in red shirt, and Richmond High School student
Cassidy Clouse is a junior, double majoring in Psychology and Human Life Science with minors in Chemistry and Neuroscience. She plans to attend graduate school to get her PsyD. In the spring, Cassidy was one of the first Math Counts tutors, serving at Richmond High School, and receiving highly positive evaluations. One student at Richmond High School said of Cassidy, “She helped me understand my questions and had me figure out the answers.” Another RHS student said, “The tutoring program was highly beneficial and helpful and I don’t see any reason/need for improvement.”
This past summer, Cassidy proved invaluable and very versatile as the Math Counts! Coordinator, taking over from the previous Student Coordinator, Katelyn Brown, who helped develop the original summer tutoring program for her Honors Thesis Project. Like Katelyn, Cassidy helped to manage the Program, serving as a substitute tutor whenever needed, as well as tutoring her own students. Her high level of competency and management skills led to her being offered the position of IU East Bicentennial Intern!
Spring 2016 Math Counts! Tutors included: Cassidy Clouse, Trevor Boram, Savannah Davis, Mackenzie Boles, Kaela Mertz, Alyshia Parks, Rachel Johnson, Hope Alexander, Kristina Kier, and Umer Khan, Dillon Hilderbrand, Katelyn Brown, and Faculty Josh Beal!
In Spring 2016, twelve Math Counts! tutors worked more than 325 hours at Richmond High School, Dennis Middle School, Hibberd Early College Academy, as well as with students from Centerville, Northeastern, and Connersville High Schools. From 239 interactions, all of the tutored students who completed evaluations agreed that their tutor helped them, as these quotes reveal:
“I really thank the IU East tutoring program. This should be at every school.”
“She breaks down problems and helps me find answers, but still lets me find them on my own.”
“My test scores were higher and my grade the whole year was a strong A.”
“He would always show different ways of doing things until I understood.”
Summer 2016 Math Counts! Tutors and Trainer: (L-R Back Row) Cassidy Clouse, Dr. Denice Honaker, Kaela Mertz, Umer Khan, Jorge Perez-Orduno, Trevor Boram; (L-R Front Row) Madeline Truette, Savannah Davis, Cherlyn Lambert, Ashton Fee
For the 2016 Summer Tutoring program, Math Counts! played a significant role, allowing more tutors to be paid and to travel beyond the IU East campus. One exceptional Elementary Education major, Ashton Fee, assisted with math instruction at Connersville’s Maplewood Elementary, Connersville Police Department, Connersville High School, as well as IU East. A teacher with whom Ashton worked gave high praise,” I rated the program a 10 because Miss Fee helped with tutoring everyday she was there and we had a successful summer school with great growth.”
Ashton Fee is a sophomore in Elementary Education and she has a minor in Early Education
IU East education faculty Dr. Denice Honaker provided tutor training, as she had the previous summer, encouraging the tutors to go back to where their students stopped being successful, realize they are a piece of the puzzle, and to have fun, utilizing their students’ learning styles to develop fun ways to learn. Another faculty member, Dr. Josh Beal, Associate Professor of Mathematics, was also invaluable to the program, as a tutor forging new partnerships at Northeastern, Dennis, and Hibberd.
Fall 2016 Tutoring grew, with summer students continuing to come to campus after school, new students being added, and the IU East tutor team growing from 12 to 23 tutors. The number of students coming to Campus in Fall semester increased to 32, and tutoring requests continued into mid-December. In November, four tutors with Spanish language skills represented the Program at Richmond High School’s EL Family Night, and Tutor Ana Aquino signed up 2 ESL families.
Math Counts! Tutors Ana Aquino, Cassidy Whitehead, Hannah Smith, and Logan Ullery at RHS EL Family Night, Nov 2, 2016
Also in Fall 2016, Math Counts! tutors were placed throughout the IU East service area – to Richmond High School, Vaile Elementary, Hagerstown Elementary, Frazee Elementary in Connersville, Maplewood Elementary in Connersville, Northeastern Elementary and Middle School, and Hibberd Early College Academy. Following is what two of the school teachers/coordinators shared:
Teacher evaluation of Seth Randall at Northeastern: “Seth has done a fantastic job in Makerspace. He jumped right in on day one to help assist students with projects and the creative process. He encouraged students to take things farther. For instance, instead of allowing students to drive there Sphero through an obstacle, he encouraged and guided them to program it. If I had to rate his performance out of five, with five being the best, he would receive a five.”
CIS Coordinator, Tammy Newton, at Vaile Elementary: “Coty is a wonderful tutor and does a great job of explaining math concepts to the kids in ways that they understand… Many of the students would have never finished their homework for that night or been able to do it in class without the help of that one-on- one tutoring that they got when Coty came in… We are in a high risk, high poverty school so the tutors coming in and helping the students give the students an insight about college that they don’t get at home. Many of their parents didn’t even graduate high school so getting a chance to work with these college students can really set a good example for them. They love seeing them and look forward to seeing them each week.”
Thanks to generous financial contributions by the IU East Chancellor’s Innovation grant and the Stamm Koechlein Family Foundation Grant, Math Counts! will continue to be funded into the summer of 2017, so that local families and schools may continue to receive math help free of charge.
Our tutoring trainer, Dr. Denice Honaker , told us that students cannot concentrate if they are hungry, so having healthy snacks available is necessary for successful learning. To address this, DOT foods generously provided 2 shipments containing healthy crackers, fruit snacks, and applesauce, which were offered to the students with permission from parents. We are very thankful to DOT Foods for their contributions to the success of the Math Counts! program.
If you would like to be an IU East Math Counts! tutor or if your student needs tutoring in math, please contact The IU East Center for Service-Learning at 765 973 8411 or email iueastsl@iue.edu or go to http://iue.libguides.com/mathcounts