Since it started in 2008, Murray Junior High’s Pilot One-on-One Tutoring program has helped students make the sometimes difficult transition from elementary school to junior high. Tutors work one-on-one with students who have D’s or failing grades in the core academic areas, supporting them so that work is turned in on time and preparations are made for tests. The goal is to help students work toward their potential.
St. Anthony Park resident Cindy Vik Thrasher started the program because she recognized, from years of experience as an active school volunteer, that all students could be successful with “daily attention from an adult who believed in them, cared about them and held them be accountable for their homework.”
Thrasher recruits volunteers for the program who are interested in working with kids. Many of them have previous experience working as tutors or have an interest in education. Some, like Thrasher, are parents or grandparents with experience helping children with homework. Some of the tutors are college students from schools such as the University of Minnesota, St. Catherine’s, St. Thomas, Hamline and Luther Seminary. They are interested in becoming teachers or earning credit for community service.
If you would like to volunteer to tutor with the Pilot One-on-One program at Murray Junior High School, please contact Cindy Vik Thrasher at cindy.thrasher@spps.org or call the school at (651) 293-8740. Murray Junior High School, www.murray.spps.org, is located at 2200 Buford Ave., Saint Paul, MN 55108.
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