Together We Can Close The Achievement Gap
The idea is a simple one: connect passionate volunteers with Catholic School students needing additional assistance in Math, Reading, and Science. The CTC started in 2002 with just one volunteer, and has since grown into an organization that serves 12 schools in the Metro Area. Tutors work one-on-one or with small groups of students providing focused instruction based on each student’s unique needs. Volunteers come from all walks of life—universities, private industry, law firms, retirees—but are united by their desire to better the outcomes of students in the Twin Cities Catholic community. Together, as Missionary Disciples, we can close the achievement gap.
Our Tutors
Tutors come from all walks of life and often get as much out of the tutoring experience as the students with whom they work.
Eapen Chacko is a member of St. Therese of Deephaven parish. He has tutored math with the Catholic Tutor Corps for nine years, in some ten different schools. A native New Yorker, he is a product of the City’s parochial school system through high school, and he firmly believes in the place of education in the mission of the Catholic Church. “A few hours a week, one-on-one with a student, supporting them and affirming their abilities and potential makes an incalculable difference to the current generation of immigrant families. It will change you, the tutor, as well.”
“Volunteering for CTC is rewarding on many levels. By providing regular opportunities to work with the same students, you get to witness for yourself the impact of the time you’re investing in the next generation. There is a natural camaraderie that builds among volunteer tutors at a particular school. CTC is a real and tangible answer we can all give to the call to be more than people of words: CTC puts faith in action.”
…Santo Cruz
“The thing to stress to you is that the Tutor Corps is not so much ‘my’ experience, which is of course both rewarding and energizing. Rather, in my view, here is what clicks with me: it is the way a student’s face lights up with accomplishment and pride when their learning improves. They seldom–if ever–complain that they have to spend time with ‘Mr. John’ . . . they understand they are there to learn. Nearly always, the student thanks me for helping them at the end of a session. Such gratitude and thankfulness is a big part of these schools’ culture. The teachers and the office staff have been kind enough to invite me to attend class programs; I have been able to arrange my work schedules to attend them. This year, I attended the Stations of the Cross devotional during Lent. I think some of the teachers get a kick out of seeing a Methodist participate. One fourth grader volunteered to teach me when to kneel…”
…John Kightlinger
