The fall 2023 semester proved to be one for the record books for the TutorZone. In just this one semester, the TutorZone provided 744 students with 3,516 hours of free tutoring services, thanks to the support of W&M donors. For comparison, in the entirety of the 2022-2023 academic year, the TutorZone offered 934 students 5,908 hours of tutoring services, meaning that the fall 2023 semester alone saw more than half the student engagement and tutoring hours of the whole previous year.
TutorZone staff credit the dedication and skill of their tutors as well as the shift to free tutoring services in October 2022 with this growth. Support from the Parents Fund made that shift possible, and the fund is underwriting the TutorZone through the 2023-2024 academic year.
The TutorZone provides students with tutoring for more than 150 courses. Tutors, who are students who received an A or A- in the courses they tutor, support students as they develop other skills for success in the classroom, such as note-taking, test-taking, studying and building relationships with professors.
“It has been wonderful to see how our students and staff have responded to the new opportunities afforded by the financial support of the Parents Fund. We’re seeing new faces benefiting from services that may have been out of reach previously,” says Wilmarie Rodriguez Ed.D. ‘21, senior associate dean of students and executive director of student success. “The love and care the Academic Wellbeing staff has infused into everything they do helps students feel welcome and comfortable accessing these resources. Our students, tutors and staff together are breaking down the stigma around asking for help and are empowering students to seek and give academic support where and when they can.”
The Parents Fund supports the Office of Career Development & Professional Engagement and the four thematic areas of Student Affairs: Campus Living, Health & Wellness, Student Engagement & Leadership and Student Success. The Parent & Family Council (PFC) champions these departments and family philanthropy, but the Parents Fund is for all families. Current parents, parents of alumni, grandparents, other family members and friends can all contribute to the Parents Fund for the success of our students.
“As parents of two current W&M students and one W&M graduate, it has been incredibly fulfilling to work with the Division of Student Affairs and Vice President Ginger Ambler ’88, Ph.D. ’06 and others to celebrate student success and engage in ways to make the university a better place for students, faculty, staff and alumni,” says PFC Co-Chair Alicia Bond ’90, P ’23, P ’25, P ’27. “We are proud that the Parents Fund is underwriting the TutorZone this academic year so that all students can access these vital services free of charge,” adds PFC Co-Chair Matt Bond P ’23, P ’25, P ’27.
Read the story from November 2022 about the TutorZone.
Editor’s note: This story originally appeared on the W&M Alumni Magazine website as an online exclusive.