JVID视频

Our volunteers do amazing work every week when they show up to tutor. However, the magic of each student-tutor relationship can be hard to convey to someone outside the reading center. We realized that, in order to allow for a broader dialogue around tutors鈥� experiences, we needed to bring tutors out of the reading center and into the community to share their experiences.

This is why we started the new school year with our first Tutor Panel, held at Lakewood Elementary in Sunnyvale.

鈥淚鈥檝e been wanting to do this since forever,鈥� said Community Engagement Manager Gina Roberti, who organized the panel. 鈥淥ur tutors are what make our program so special. I wanted to give them a forum to share their stories with us, and offer advice on how we can make the JVID视频 experience even better for our volunteers.鈥�

We invited a group of five diverse, dedicated tutors to serve as panelists: John Turner, a retired high school English teacher who has tutored with JVID视频 for 12 years; Pat Boyle, an experienced volunteer and pillar of the Sunnyvale community; Paige Nguyen, a realtor who tutored with JVID视频 in Sacramento before moving to Silicon Valley; Vince Passanisi, an accountant at KPMG who has worked to get his coworkers involved with the program; and Priyanka Kapoor, a former high school volunteer-turned-intern who just began her freshman year at UCLA.

As the founding region of JVID视频, we are fortunate to have several tutors like John who have been volunteering with us for over a decade. JVID视频 has changed a lot during this time, but the fact that volunteers return year after year speaks to the positive experience they have working with their students each week.

Gina moderated the panel and asked the participants questions about their tutor experience, touching on topics like the tough challenges faced by tutors, favorite student stories, and advice for new site coordinators.

Paige spoke about one significant challenge that she has experienced as a tutor. 鈥淪ometimes students come into the program and at first they really don鈥檛 want to be there,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey鈥檒l tell me, 鈥業 hate reading.鈥欌�� Instead of letting this attitude discourage her, she says, 鈥淚 take it as a challenge. I tell them, 鈥榊ou know what? By the end of the year, you鈥檙e going to love reading.鈥欌��

Paige鈥檚 perspective demonstrates how truly dedicated she is to helping her student succeed. Many tutors like Paige come to JVID视频 without a formal background in education, but their enthusiasm and commitment inspire students to develop a love of reading.

Site Coordinator Alex Nichol posed another important question to the panelists: 鈥淲hat鈥檚 something that a site coordinator can do to make you feel appreciated?鈥�

John said that he would like to know about concrete student progress. 鈥淚 want to know what my student鈥檚 reading level was at the beginning of the year and what it was at the end.鈥� Concrete data achieved through our assessments is helpful to our organization, but also gives tutors the satisfaction of knowing just how much their student improved as a result of their hard work.

In addition to hosting this panel as a way for tutors to make their voices heard, it proved to be a valuable learning experience for many new AmeriCorps members serving with JVID视频.

鈥淗earing the panel’s stories brought back so many memories of when I tutored,鈥� said Jeannette Lee, a new site coordinator who used to tutor with JVID视频 in New York. 鈥淚t was comforting to hear their passion and sincerity. They reminded me that I am just like them, and that I can do this. They gave me so much hope for a successful year.鈥�