This semester the ALC Peer Tutors have worked consistently and

enthusiastically at building connections with professors and strongly

urging their tutees to attend faculty office hours since after all, faculty

are our students best resource. Many professors also encourage use

of our tutoring service and prefer to know if their students are being

tutored. One easy and convenient way to keep faculty informed of

tutor and tutee pairings involved including an option on our online

Tutor Request Form to include professors on tutoring assignments.

Many students selected this option and it has opened the doors to

many productive and valuable conversations between and among

tutors, tutees, and professors. We are hopeful that this tool remains

an important communication vehicle for everyone!

We also say goodbye to many graduating tutors who have dedicated

almost 5000 hours of assistance to their peers. We thank them and

our graduating Tutor Managers and Senior Tutors.

Happy Reading and enjoy your summer vacations!

Erin Evans

Welcome from the Director

GREAT JOB TO OUR SPRING 2013 NEW TUTORS

Sara Baum „15 Jean Phillipe Bli „14 Alyssa Wunsch „16

Meghan Boyle „14 Kelly Gerber „16 Erin Hand „15

Courtney Konchon „15 Taylor Lindline „15 Desiree Mauriello „16

David McCarrick „16 Kelli O‟Dell „14 Heather Palmer „15

Khushabu Patel „16 Sophia Rivera „15 Sam Rushworth „15

Agustin Sanchez „15 Krysten Stanford „15 Victoria Sweeney „15

Tyler VanBlargan „16 Rebecca Wertz „15 Ashleigh Weidner „15

The Tutor’s Voice

A C A D E M I C L E A R N I N G C E N T E R

Inside this issue:

Building Faculty

Relationships 2-5

Tutor Managers 6

Spotlight on

Graduating

Tutors

7-8

Spring 2013

Issue 5

The News You Can Use to Succeed

Page 2

The ALC has been dedicated to finding ways to promote communication and collaboration

between the tutors, tutees, and faculty. Fortunately we have found another way with the

introduction of a new feature on our online Tutor Request Form which invites tutees to include

their professor on the tutor assignment email. Feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. We

bring you the experiences of several professors, tutors, and tutees who have taken the initiative

to share information which helps bridge the gap between tutoring and professor expectations

since professors know their classes best.

Building Faculty Relationships

Chellsey Labik ‘14: Q: Did you or your tutee decide

to meet with the professor?

A: I typically always encourage my

tutees to utilize their professor as a

resource. I also know that it may

be more comfortable for some

students to see their professor in

office hours if someone else is with

them to discuss delicate matters. I

had initially come up with the idea;

however, Symphany and I decided

when we would go together.

Q: What were the benefits of this

meeting and how did it affect

subsequent sessions?

A: It really helped us to distinguish

the areas in which improvement

could be made but also helped

emphasize Symphany‟s strong

points in the course.

Symphany Kennedy ‘16:

Q: Why is it important to

include your professor on the

tutor request?

A: I wanted Professor Haftel to

know that I am trying my hardest

to get a passing grade in the class

and so she would know that I am

reaching out to other resources.

Q: Would you feel comfortable going to your

professor’s office hours on your own?

A: I am very comfortable with going to my professor‟s

hours on my own. The last time I went to see Professor

Haftel I asked her about my performance in the class and it

was a very successful meeting.

Q: What study skills have you gained from tutoring?

A: Using acronyms to remember different points about

grammar during tests and writing sentences out on my own

to get me used to writing in Spanish. I also learned to

practice conjugations on my own.

Professor Haftel, a Spanish professor, has been at Albright for 20

years. Last semester she suggested that we add the option to include

professors on the Tutor Request Form so that students are able to select if

they would like their professor to be aware of their tutor request and

assigned tutor. Our office embraced this new idea and moved forward

with adding this option.

For Professor Haftel, having the professor included on the tutor

assignment email allows her to know which students have gone the extra

mile for help. Not having to ask students who their tutors are anymore is

helpful too because she is copied on the emails. She believes this new

feature can facilitate meetings between the professor, tutee, and tutor.

Professor Haftel welcomed tutor, Chellsey Labik, and tutee, Symphany Kennedy, when they

contacted her to arrange a meeting because she believes it‟s important for tutees to know

professors care about their success. She thinks it is important for tutors and tutees to have

individualized meetings with the professor because this allows for a direct connection and

immediate clarification. Also, meeting with the professor is a first step and meeting with the

tutor is the reinforcement that the students need.

Q: What sparked the interest in going to meet with Dr. Rice?

A: I worked with a few tutees who had Professor Rice this semester. While

all of my tutees seek help for different reasons, they all seem to share some

of the same struggles with studying. One tutee expressed that he was

really nervous to go to the professor. I decided to meet with Dr. Rice to

discuss basic study strategies and areas that he typically observes to be

difficult for his students. After communicating the information I discussed

with Dr. Rice to my tutees, I started to see a difference in their approach to

studying and completing assignments. I also noticed a positive difference in

the graded assignments for my tutee who initially expressed the concern.

Q: What were the benefits of this meeting and how did it effect

subsequent sessions?

A: After the meeting, I realized that I had to help my tutees focus more on vocabulary and how

to apply it. Initially I was focusing on the tutee‟s notes, but now I am spending more time

focusing on the concepts in the book. Since my tutees and I have been focusing more on the

book, I am seeing more and more improvement with each session.

Q: What made one of your tutees interested in meeting with you and the professor?

A: I was seeing improvement in my tutees‟ assignments but not necessarily with the exam

grades. I then suggested talking to the professor and reminded my tutee about how helpful the

information was that I gathered from meeting with Dr. Rice. My tutee thought meeting together

would be a good idea and we discussed what we wanted to accomplish when meeting Dr. Rice.

We decided it would be important for my tutee to ask what needed to be done in order to

improve on the exams and if there is anything else that could be done to practice outside of

class. We also decided to discuss difficulties with reading comprehension.

Page 3

Professor Rice, a sociology professor, has been at Albright for about

10 years. Meghan Boyle was a newly hired tutor this spring and tutors

multiple sociology courses. She contacted Dr. Rice early on to discover

his classroom expectations and course content in an effort to leverage as

much assistance and knowledge to her tutees as possible, two of whom

are students in Dr. Rice‟s courses this semester. The tutees were happy

to benefit from their communication and Dr. Rice continues to meet with

other sociology tutors to maximize tutee success.

He likes the new option to include the professor on the Tutor Request

Form because it allows him to know who is getting extra help and shows

that the student cares. Dr. Rice feels that understanding the professor

helps the tutor and tutee think more clearly about the class. Meeting with

the professor can put their relationship at ease and allow the tutee to enjoy the academic

experience more. Dr. Rice also believes that sometimes having two sets of ears hearing class

and exam expectations is better than one. The tutor and tutee may perceive the information

from the professor differently and meeting all together helps with clarification.

Dr. Rice thinks it is important for students to have relationships with their professors outside of

class. He says that as human beings we have misunderstandings and make mistakes. Tutors

should remind their tutees that when you have a misunderstanding you should seek

clarification. Students who have a relationship with their professor are doing this because the

one-on-one interaction allows you to develop a deeper relationship with a professor.

Building Faculty Relationships

Meghan Boyle ‘14

Professor Saboori has been at Albright for 25 years and teaches mainly economics courses.

He thinks that the new option to include professors on the Tutor Request Form is a great idea

because he feels it is very beneficial to know which students are actively seeking help. He

thinks that the worst thing a student can do is not ask questions before and after class.

Professor Saboori also believes that professors want to talk to their students outside of class and

discuss their questions. If students do poorly on an assignment or exam, he will write on the

returned assignment or exam, “please see me.” Therefore, meeting one-on-one allows him to

discuss struggles and strengths.

When business tutor, Ashley Werst, contacted him, Professor Saboori

was happy to have an opportunity to discuss information about his

current ECO207 course. Ashley was one of the tutors he met with who

took economics with another professor. He feels that because different

professors teach different material, meeting with the tutor allows him to

provide clarification for his course. He would like to see more tutors

and tutees be in touch with the professors because the more this

happens, the more professors will be able to help their students. He

also believes that students find it easier to meet with professors when

they hear about the benefits from their peers such as their Peer Tutors.

Saboori suggests that both tutors and tutees stop by his office, e-mail

him, or come to his class whenever they have questions.

Q: What sparked your interest in going to meet with your tutee's professor?

A: I wanted to meet with Dr. Saboori to ask specific questions about his expectations for

assignments I was reviewing with my tutees. I had Dr. Ghosh as my statistics professor so there

were many differences in teaching styles and expectations. I felt it was best to have input and

perspective from the current professor.

Q: What did you do prior to meeting with Dr. Saboori to prepare?

A: I collected my tutees‟ syllabi, assignment problems, and previous exam questions that my

tutees got wrong and prepared questions for Dr. Saboori. I also had questions of my own

prepared about some of the different material.

Q: What were the benefits and how did talking to Professor Saboori affect subsequent

sessions?

A: After speaking with Professor Saboori I was able to provide my tutees

with accurate information for the questions we‟ve been discussing. My

tutees said that they felt very important and unique that I would go out of

my way for them. I encouraged them to meet with the professor too.

Q: What kinds of changes have you observed in your tutees as a

result of this meeting?

A: After sharing the information I learned from Dr. Saboori with my

tutees, I felt my tutees were more confident in themselves and saw the

benefits of asking the professor questions, even if you are not a currently

one of their students. My tutees also seem more motivated to work with

me because I was willing to go beyond just a weekly tutoring session and

showed my concern for them to do well in their courses.

Page 4

Building Faculty Relationships

Ashley Werst ‘14

BUSINESS NAME

Page 5

Tiara Willis ‘15:

Q: Why did you request a tutor?

A: I had an issue with my conjugations in

Spanish. Although I‟m Hispanic, we don‟t use

the proper conjugations and it was hard to

adjust. I wanted to nip it in the bud before a

test came up. Also, I wanted to adjust myself to

the more formal conjugations.

Q: Why did you select to include your

professor on your tutor assignment?

A: It was a great way to show Professor

Rodriguez that I was willing to work hard for a

good grade.

Q: Would you feel comfortable going to your

professor’s office hours on your own?

A: Yes, going to their office hours allows them

to hear your direct concerns and it‟s also more

individualized. They can review your tests, see

where you‟re struggling, and see the patterns

of errors which they can‟t do in class.

Q: If you were to give advice to other

students about this what would you say?

A: It‟s definitely worth it. It gives you a better

understanding of the course and bridges the

gap that you might have between your

professor and yourself in terms of your fear of

approaching them and knowing how to

implement their suggestions.

Building Faculty Relationships

Emma Spade

‘15: Q: What did

you do prior to

this meeting to

prepare?

A: When Tiara

and I had our

first meeting we

talked about what she thought her issues

were in Spanish. Then we met with Professor

Rodriguez and talked about areas Tiara could

improve. Professor Rodriguez focused on

different teaching approaches for me and

suggested different learning styles for Tiara.

Q: What were the benefits of this meeting

and how did it affect subsequent sessions?

A: I was very focused on Tiara and the

specific things she needed help with such as

sentence structure. It helped us to focus our

sessions on what she really needs for the

class. It gave me a better idea of how to

structure our sessions such as having her

write out sentences and giving full answers

over just conjugating the verbs. We always

review the problem areas we covered in the

meeting and focus on her strong points.

Additionally, I have taken these suggestions

and used them with my other tutees.

Professor Rodriguez has been at Albright for 10 years and teaches

Spanish and FYS courses. She believes the option to include the professors

on the tutor assignment email is very helpful because it makes it easier for

professors to contact the tutors. Professor Rodriguez said that this also allows

the professors to know that their student has gone through with requesting a

tutor, and it makes the student feel that it is okay to have a tutor. In addition,

she notes that it makes us all partners on a team.

She views meeting with tutors and tutees as important because it allows the

tutor to know exactly how their tutee is performing in class. Tutee Tiara

Willis informed Professor Rodriguez that she was requesting a tutor for her class and that she

wanted to meet as a group. Once Professor Rodriguez received the tutor assignment email she

contacted Emma Spade, her assigned tutor, about Tiara‟s interest in meeting. Emma and Tiara

then arranged their meeting with the professor. Professor Rodriguez felt that having this meeting

provided an opportunity for Emma to receive suggestions on how Tiara should proceed in class.

Everyone worked together to prioritize the areas that needed to be focused on during tutoring.

Professor Rodriguez says that she would love to meet more of the language tutors and has

noticed improvements in grades for students who meet weekly with tutors.

Yvonne Okafor ‘15, Accounting & Economics

Why You Wanted to be a TM: When I started tutoring, I fell in love with the job. I

love helping people in general. I can share ideas that would benefit the ALC and

help it grow into an even more positive direction.

Goals as a TM: I know Accounting and Economics might not be some people‟s

favorite field because of the numbers and related concepts but I believe that tutors

have a hidden “on-switch” when it comes to that and hopefully I'll be able to

activate it.

Interesting Fact: I speak two and a half languages and I've lived in 3 different

countries. Also, I'm not American, I'm Nigerian.

Advice for Academic Success: Study, have fun, and most importantly, don't forget

the main reason you came to college. Ten years from now when you're a successful

professional, you'll be happy you didn't take your studies for granted.

Chellsey Labik ‘14, Foreign Languages

Why You Wanted to be a TM: To take on a leadership role that allows me to give

back to the ALC Peer Tutoring program what it has given to me.

Goals as a TM: To make a positive impact on the Peer Tutoring program and to

grow as a team leader.

Interesting Fact: I am an official for two Roller Derby leagues.

Advice for Academic Success: Master time management, try your best to stay

organized, and utilize professors as your best resource.

Page 6

New Tutor Managers for 2013-2014

Nicole Huber ‘15, Math

Why You Wanted to be a TM: I wanted to expand on my leadership skills and

work more closely with the tutoring team. Also, being a Tutor Manager will help

prepare me for when I become a teacher.

Goals as a TM: As a TM I want to be able to effectively communicate with all of the

tutors in the math discipline team and bring in new ideas for the ALC.

Interesting Fact: I have an irrational fear of spiders/bugs but the irony is, I love

being outside.

Advice for Academic Success: Take quality notes in class and don‟t be afraid to

ask questions. Managing your time for homework, studying, projects, and fun is

essential for success.

Yanie Yuan ‘14, Humanities & Social Sciences

Why You Wanted to be a TM: I enjoy new challenges and trying new things. I think

leadership skills are absolutely vital for career development and I'm very grateful to

the ALC for providing me with this opportunity.

Goals as a TM: I hope that as a TM I can make progress on my leadership and

communication skills. As for my team, I hope I can be helpful to the tutors whenever

needs arise.

Interesting Fact: I'm actually a very indoorsy person. I love housework, but when I

get awfully busy at school and/or work, my room tends to be messy.

Advice for Academic Success: I always believe in diligence. I would say talent is

desirable but diligence is absolutely indispensable. In terms of academics, my

experience is that working hard always pays off. Always.

John Demko, Biochemistry,

CRLA Level 1 Certified My next step after Albright is to attend

the University of Pittsburgh School of

Medicine. Tutoring has helped me build

interpersonal skills which will serve me

in medical school and the rest of my life.

As a physician, teaching will become an

essential part of my job; tutoring has

taught me that I genuinely enjoy helping

people learn and that it can be such a

rewarding experience. The best thing

about tutoring for me was the unique

connection I had with other tutors on

campus. I started tutoring as a resume

builder, to reinforce

material, and simply

to have a job. I had no

idea that I would love

tutoring and teaching

so much. One word

that sums up my

tutoring experience is

fruitful.

Courtney White, Accounting, Economics, and Finance, CRLA Level 1 Certified My next step after tutoring is to begin my job at Ernst & Young at their Philadelphia office as an

auditor this coming October and until then I will be preparing for my CPA exam. I think my role

as a tutor has prepared me for my future by helping to explain things in many

different ways. When I start working at my job, I will need to be able to

communicate my questions and concerns clearly, and I think tutoring helped

with that as well. After a few years of working I will be considered a manager

and I will have to help young employees, and when that happens I will be

able to utilize my tutoring skills again while teaching the younger employees.

The best thing about the tutoring program, from my perspective, is when you

feel like you are really making a difference in the grades of the person you

are tutoring. When they say to you that „you explain it to me in a clearer way,‟

you really feel like you are helping them with the subject.

Mark Behler, Accounting and Math,

CRLA Level 1 Certified Tutoring has prepared me for my next step as a

financial administrator at Miners Bank by helping

me to improve my time management skills. It also

gave me practice in professionalism when

communicating with others. I never thought that I

could have learned to juggle my class

responsibilities with job responsibilities through

tutoring, but my tutoring experience has given me

a lot of practice. My best moment of tutoring has

been leading the ACC101 workshops this year. I

saw how effective I could be as a tutor in a group

setting versus individual tutoring, and it was a way

for me to directly help the professors. The best tip I

ever received from a professor

about tutoring was to make sure

that my tutees are actually

learning the material and not just

memorizing it for the next exam. I

readjusted my tutoring

techniques to fit this by using

Socratic questioning techniques

to test my tutees knowledge.

Graduating Tutor Manager:

Tanya Carter, Humanities, CRLA Level 1 Certified

Tanya has been an ALC tutor since spring 2010 and tutored sociology and

Spanish courses. Tanya helped 52 students for a total of 452 hours. After

graduation Tanya will be exploring opportunities and is considering pursuing

her Masters in Education. Tanya feels the ALC makes an impact on the student

body as a whole.

Page 7

Spotlight On Graduating Tutors

Nick Devine, Sociology and Criminology

My next step is attend graduate school for global affairs. Tutoring has

prepared me for my next step by teaching me to communicate more

effectively. If I could have done something differently, I would have started

tutoring earlier. I didn't become a tutor until the fall semester of my senior

year. The best tutoring tip I received from a professor was to not be afraid of

using the professors as a resource. If I had to sum up my tutoring experience

in one word it would be rewarding.

Page 8

Emily McMordie, Psychology and Spanish, CRLA Level 1 Certified, Senior Tutor

Peer tutoring has provided me clarity in my future career goals. The experience led me to realize

how to combine my passion for psychology and peer mentoring into a career in counseling. The

tutoring program has prepared me for the professional world of graduate school and has

intensified my desire to work with students. Reviewing the basic concepts and rules of the

language with my tutees really helped my reading and writing skills in my

upper-level Spanish classes. My best moment of tutoring was that I once had a

tutee who was really struggling in his course but put forth more effort than any

student I‟ve ever worked with. This student was often quiet and reserved and

didn‟t show much emotion beyond frustration with the course. He was very

nervous for Spanish oral exams at mid-terms but we prepared intensely. This

tutee ended up earning a B on the exam, and was absolutely ecstatic. I had

never seen him smile so big! I was so happy that he had received such an

outstanding grade but even more excited that he proved to himself that he had

the capacity to succeed in the course. Tutoring has been enriching!

Farewell to our graduating tutors and many thanks for all of their contributions!

Ashleigh Frajerman, 486.25 hrs Leigh Ann Gregoire, 280.5 hrs Kaitlin Irwin, 309.5 hrs

Vasilia Kambouroglos, 339.25 hrs Tanya Carter, 452 hrs Curtis Adams, 276.75 hrs

Mark Behler, 166.25 hrs Lindsay Boyd, 107.75 hrs John Demko, 207.25 hrs

Nick Devine, 150.5 hrs Peter Ferlita, 90.75 hrs Nicole Ferrara, 117 hrs

April Jones, 130 hrs Kaitlin Kimmel, 141.75 hrs Emily McMordie, 304 hrs

Jennifer Perillo, 268.5 hrs Kaitlyn Pietrusewicz, 72.75 hrs Alyssa Rogers, 128.25 hrs

Bradley Verret, 452.25 hrs Courtney White, 172.5 hrs

Spotlight On Graduating Tutors