The Achieve Foundation Volunteer Tutor Program has been providing South Orange Maplewood School District’s students with free tutoring for 19 years.
Davyani and Rohan Guha (Noelle Harteveld)
Said Amy Forman, the Coordinator for the Achieve Volunteer Tutor Program, “It’s really a remarkable program. On Saturday mornings, you see adults tutoring young children, high school students tutoring each other, and students who were tutored paying it forward. There is a student on Saturday mornings who gets tutored an hour, and then stays to tutor an elementary student for the next hour. It speaks volumes about the value that this community places on education and on helping others.”
This year, for ten volunteers, tutoring has become a family affair. There are five families in which a parent and a child are both Achieve tutors. They are: mother and daughter, Gina and Julia D’Eletto; mother and daughter, Dana and Kasen Gilbert; mother and son, Devyani and Rohan Kremer Guha; mother and son, Valyrie Laedlein and Luke McPhillips; and father and son, Mark and Max Lazen. They all came to tutoring at different times and in different ways, but they all share the enormous satisfaction they get from helping others.
Dana and Kasen Gilbert (Noelle Harteveld)
About five years ago, Devyani Guha was invited into a Seth Boyden classroom to help with writing. She noticed that some of the kids were having a hard time, and those children told her that they did not get any help at home. “It got me thinking that somewhere, I could help out,” she said. So she asked around, found out about Achieve, and has been tutoring ever since. Her son, Rohan, who is in 11th grade, wanted to tutor, but his competitive swimming schedule got in the way. But when his Saturday mornings suddenly opened up, he jumped into tutoring his fellow Columbia students in Algebra 2 and in physics. Devyani has another son in the 8th grade who looks forward to also becoming a tutor soon as well. She says that their family looks at it this way, “If you can help, why not?”
In the Gilbert family, the younger generation led the way. Kasen Gilbert, a 10th grader, began tutoring as a 7th grader. She loves little kids and spends every Wednesday having fun tutoring at Tuscan Elementary. “Tutoring definitely reflects my family values in that we all work together to succeed,” said Kasen. “When I was younger, my mom used to tutor me in math because I always struggled and now I can help others.” Her mom, Dana, just began tutoring with Achieve this year. Her daughter’s growing independence inspired her to look for ways to fill her time in a way that was important and meaningful to her. She said, “Math and numbers make sense to me, and it’s really nice to help a young person. I enjoy my hour tutoring.” Dana is very fond of the student she works with, and said, “I just love her! She’s motivated, she’s sweet, and she wants to be there.”
Valyrie Laedlein and Luke McPhillips (Noelle Harteveld)
Luke McPhillips, a senior, was also the first member of his family to become an Achieve tutor. His mom, Valyrie Laedlein, just began tutoring in January when a job change opened up her schedule. She calls tutoring “a delight,” and found an unexpected advantage. “Giving a child an hour of uninterrupted attention is very worthwhile,” she said. “That’s a real treat for him and for me in today’s distracted society.”
Luke tutors two or three students a week with Achieve. He especially enjoys working with elementary school kids, saying, “I think getting tutored at a younger age can have more of an impact, because they’re excited and eager to learn.” He feels the age difference helps foster a mentoring relationship. When he begins his freshman year at the University of Virginia next fall, he plans to keep tutoring. And he said, “If there isn’t a place I can volunteer to tutor, I’ll establish a program.”
The Achieve Foundation Volunteer Tutor program is always seeking new tutors. You can learn more about it on their web site, achievefoundation.org. If you would like to volunteer, please contact Amy Forman at aforman@somsd.k12.nj.us
