I am an 11th grader at Highschool of American Studies. In 2017, when I was a 7th grader at NEST+M, a Gifted and Talented school on the Lower East Side, I noticed that the kids in our school mostly came from extremely privileged backgrounds, in sharp contrast to the neighborhood.

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I thought it was unfair that children living right across the street from NEST+M were not attending our school. When I did some research, I found this was due to these neighborhood kids not being prepared for the citywide entrance examination for all Gifted and Talented schools given to 4-year-olds. So I gathered some classmates, and, with the backing of University Settlement, a local organization with a 130-year history, I started a free, one-on-one service to help those kids get ready for that test, and give them an equal chance to succeed. 

 

Now, in the midst of the Covid crisis, with almost all volunteer tutoring services suspended, I realized we should pivot to offer our free, one-on-one expertise to help 2nd graders up to 8th graders who may be struggling with online or hybrid learning. We offer trained tutors from top NYC high schools who will work with your child for free, and develop a close relationship over several weeks or months. Our goal is to help them not just keep up, but surge ahead!