It’s mid-August. The beach beckons.
So — how did this happen?! — does school.
The first day is August 27. Time to buy new clothes. Pick up supplies.
And find a tutor.
For a decade, parents unwilling (or unable) to fork over thousands of dollars — or whose kids don’t really vibe with another adult teacher type — have had an alternative.
Top Hat Tutors — originated and still run by Staples High School — is a team of 60 juniors and seniors.
Top Hat is not limited to Staples. Tutors come from Weston and Wilton too. They tutor in Fairfield also — and at the middle and elementary school levels.
Rates are $50 an hour for an individual student. Group sessions add $25 per student. Reduced rates are available, upon request.
A special program matches low-income students with a tutor for a free session every other Sunday.
Tutoring takes place in students’ homes, libraries, book stores — wherever there is little distraction. Online tutoring is also available.
A key to Top Hat’s success is that every tutor has taken the classes they tutor. Some even had the same teacher as the student they work with. So the tutors not only understand the content; they’re intimately familiar with the actual course.
Vice president Megan Sargent and president Ryder Levine lead this year’s Top Hat Tutors.
Some clients are tutored weekly. Others call for one session — when, for example, a big test looms.
Clients tip their hat to Top Hat. In the dog-eat-dog world that is school today, it’s nice to have young pups around.
(Click here for the Top Hat website. To request a tutor, click here. To apply for the free tutoring program, click here. To apply to become a Top Hat tutor, click here.)
(Here’s another smart move: Please click here to make a tax-deductible contribution to “06880.” Thank you!)