Fewer than a third of Minnesota students are achieving critical proficiency in math and reading.
I have a great story about a Slayton man who retired from a lucrative career in finance and is now putting those math skills to good use by tutoring students in Slayton through AmeriCorps. His former students are now graduating.
The timing is perfect for this story because 800 tutors are needed across the state of Minnesota this fall, including in the southwestern area.
Robert Zishka of Slayton worked at a brokerage firm for years before retiring and traveling the world with his wife. With their children grown, they decided to resettle in Slayton where they could be close to family. After a few years in town, he looked for a way to give back to the community and found Math Corps.
Math Corps is a part of the AmeriCorps program: federal money disbursed to states to help schools and nonprofits with staffing needs for things like tutoring (Reading Corps and Math Corps), environmental projects (Climate Corps) and summer programs (Summer Impact Corps.) It’s a win-win: the schools and nonprofits get the help they need and AmeriCorp pays the wages.
In addition to tutoring, Robert also completed service hours supporting other school and community needs, such as setting up a tennis program for kids and being a story time reader.
Another way Robert has continued to give back is by volunteering at a “Reality Check” workshop for high school seniors on the cusp of graduating. The event involves step-by-step exercises where students can see how to balance a checkbook, plan for expenses, repay loans, and learn other aspects of managing money. Between his background in finance and his experience with students, the workshops feel perfectly suited to what he has to offer.
Some great stats about the efficacy of tutoring*: In a randomized controlled trial, 4th through 8th grade students receiving Math Corps tutoring for 90 minutes per week were 2-3 months ahead of their expected trajectory.
Students who received Reading Corps tutoring demonstrated growth in phonics, reading fluency, and oral reading fluency scores that were equivalent to an extra 50%-90% of a year of schooling.
