Reach Became Reality

Beginnings at schools are rarely perfect. Working with teens rarely goes smoothly. Combine the two, and you're asking for trouble. My goal is (and always has been) to have the tutor cohort together by the end of this week's pre-service training. Today, we had about 10 - with 10 additional kids already enrolled. Additionally, I provided a financial incentive for current tutors who recruit others. By the end of the week, I imagine we'll have a solid cohort of 25-30 tutors.

Only ten showed up. Why am I smiling?

Well, each of those kids will be back tomorrow - hopefully, with others. There was some confusion about the program's start date, and I know other tutors will be arriving for the first time tomorrow. Most of all, you should have seen how excited our new tutors were!

Their chests swelled when they heard about their responsibilities. They shook their heads in understanding when I explained my expectations. They nodded in agreement when I told them they would be doing the hard work, but we would never ask them to do anything they couldn't do. And you should have seen the smiles when we explained the bonus structure...

Be on time? I can do that!

Improve my grades? I can do that!

Increase my percentile on standardized tests? I can...wait, what's a percentile?...oh, I can do that!

Improve my own reading level and that of the student I tutor? I can do that!

We designed four days of training for a reason. Beginnings are always bumpy, but today was a fantastic start. I can't wait to share our stories as we move forward.

Today, Reach became reality.

Thanks, as always, for reading.

Mark