Math and science tutoring has moved to a new, quieter location: S-43.
The new center, which opened on Jan. 20, offers help in all math and science classes — anything from Elementary Statistics to Advanced Physics. The old location was "crowded and dense" and "right next to a bathroom with a freon machine," which would randomly go off, said Evan Sarina, a math tutor.
The program is currently serving 450 students, up 40 percent from last quarter, he said. "We don’t have enough tutors, so we can’t meet demand," said Sarina.
The challenge is attracting tutors, he said. Many well-qualified students are taking internships or working elsewhere.
The center offers individual, group, and online tutoring. Drop-in tutors are usually also available.
Tutors volunteer for one quarter, then get paid. Individual tutors are paid $8 per hour, and group tutors are paid $10. Tutoring program coordinator Diana Alves de Lima called it a fun, educational place to work which "looks great on transfer applications."
The center also has had no stable source of funding in recent years because of the recent budget cuts, according to de Lima.
The De Anza Student Senate, which approved $7,428 in new funding on Wednesday, "has been incredibly supportive and has allowed us to keep our door open," she said.
However, the Student Senate approves funding on a yearly basis, and can’t be counted on for long-term support.
The center also recently received $2,000 from a presidential grant for student retention.
The grant money is for "anything extra we are doing to expand," said tutor supervisor Laura Bell.
To be a tutor, students must submit an application, a teacher recommendation, and have received a B or above in the subject they plan to tutor in. They must then enroll in a one-unit tutoring course.
Sarina joined in fall 2004, and won tutor of the month during winter 2005. Tutoring for language arts, foreign languages, accounting and social sciences is located in L-47.
More information can be found online at www.deanza.edu/tutorial/.
This article appears in the Feb. 6, 2006 print edition of La Voz.
