The Volunteer STEM and Math Tutor Program for Kensington Health Sciences Academy for the Math and Science Coalition: An Interview with Eric Langenmayr

Posted by on June 8, 2014

Interviewed by Liz Shriver, introduction by Margaret McLaughlin, KHSA Community Partnerships VISTA

Eric Langenmayr is the coordinator of PEF’s Math+Science Coalition STEM tutoring program at Kensington Health Sciences Academy. This is his second year volunteering in the school, and in that time he has been able to double the number of tutors assisting in classrooms. Eric is a retired chemist who is able to put his experience to work with classes by designing fun experiments with the school’s science teachers. He has been an integral part of the school, from recruiting new programs to participating in school-wide events, and we are very thankful to have him!

Q: How did you get involved with Kensington Health Sciences Academy?

A: Well, my primary career was as a chemist. I worked in research and development for 30 years at Rohm and Haas Company. When I retired early, I was looking around for what to do next. I thought about teaching high school chemistry in Philadelphia.

Then I met Don McKinney, the coordinator of the Math and Science Coalition at the Philadelphia Education Fund. Don advised me to volunteer first in the schools to get experience and exposure. So I volunteered (at age 60) at University City high School. After my experience volunteering in science classrooms, I realized that I did not want to be a full time teacher. I also realized that there was a huge need for STEM Tutors and that tutoring was an effective way to teach students. Also, I figured there were a lot of people in the Greater Philly area who would be willing and able to volunteer as STEM tutors.

I spoke with Don about this and he suggested we look into starting a pilot program consisting of retired STEM professionals to volunteer as in classroom tutors in STEM subjects. The idea was that we would be able to help students with class work and homework and that as working professionals; we could also share how our work relates to classroom learning. I wanted to make sure we were supporting students and teachers, not defining the lessons. This strategy has helped us build rapport with students as well as teachers. The program is called the Volunteer STEM and Math Tutor Program. The next step after defining our goals was to find a high school to partner with.

Q: How did you build a partnership with Kensington Health Sciences Academy?

A: We created a small planning group with the Math and Science Coalition to get the program started. Don and I visited a few schools. Don had a prior relationship with Mr. Williams so we met with him and we told him we wanted to bring older professionals in STEM fields to support his classrooms. He was very excited to work with us.

During our first meeting, he brought in students and asked them if they would want us as tutors in their classrooms, he brought in teachers and he gave us a tour of the school. He is just very open and he has a vision for the school. For example, he already has Health Related Technology and Dental Technology programs as well as a plan to start a dental clinic in the school. Mr. Williams was the reason that we came to the school. The concern he has for the students and the support he would give us as a partner were unique.

Q: This is your second year at Kensington, how has your partnership grown?

A: The first year we had five volunteers. In our second year we’ve had as many as 14. Our tutors are making a big commitment. We have one person who comes in from Downingtown, sometimes multiple times a week. Next year I would love to get 20-25 people coming in. There are only three math teachers here and we’d like to more fully support each class.

We’ve also expanded our volunteer base. In addition to retired STEM professionals, we also recruit STEM professionals who are working part time as well as college students. The college volunteers are excellent with the students. They bring enthusiasm and relate easily to students. We’ve had unbelievable tutors from Temple, Drexel, Penn…from undergraduates to PhD students. We’ve had students who are the president of their robotics club…the list goes on. And our older STEM tutors are remarkable as well, many having PhD’s in STEM fields or taught STEM subjects. At this point we are still figuring out how many tutors we can support but we will continue to grow.

We have also introduced a new online tutoring system called My Free Tutor this spring. My Free Tutor was developed with the help of the Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) of Montgomery County. A former colleague of mine helped to develop My Free Tutor and told me about it. We were able to start a small pilot program at KHSA this Spring. The students involved this year liked it and stayed fully engaged with their tutor during one on one online sessions. RSVP has been fully supportive and is now a Third Party Provider at KHSA.

Q: How did the community partnerships VISTA, Margaret, support you as a partner?

A: When all the cuts went through this summer, we were unsure what was going to happen and how our partnership would be affected. Margaret is a god send. She is an excellent liaison. She is always accessible and helps to communicate information to Mr. Williams. She is very responsive whether communicating with me, the STEM tutors, Kensington students, teachers or Mr. Williams. It is very helpful that she is close with Mr. Williams and the teachers. I always copy Margaret on email communication so she can be kept up to date on any new ideas or problems.

Margaret held everything together this year. If a STEM tutor had a problem, they could reach out to Margaret for help. For example, one of our tutors from Downingtown came on a half-day by accident. Margaret helped her find something productive to do instead of having a wasted day. There was also a day that I couldn’t make it to the My Free Tutor session. Since Margaret went through the training with us, she was able to run the tutor session with no problems.

Q: Margaret held regular Third Partner Provider meetings this year, did this help?

A: I had no idea that there were so many 3rd party providers at the school before the meetings started! I understand how siloed groups can be from working at a big company. That happens in schools too. Even amongs our tutors, we’re all going in school at different times and are supporting different teachers. The Third Party Provider meetings helped to break down the silos between partners.

For example, I met Wanda Cruz from LULAC (League of United Latin American Citizens) in one of the meetings. She invited me to use their computer lab when we needed a room for our RSVP online tutoring program. They offered support to us because we knew them. That is the sort of cooperation and sharing of resources that can happen because you just know who the people are. It helps us get to know each other and it makes you feel like you’re part of a community.

We are also able to share knowledge about students. Sometimes if there’s a student with an issue which the STEM tutors can’t address, Margaret is able to find a partner who can step in and provide a more direct intervention. For example, we had a student complaining of a toothache. I talked to Margaret, who said we should talk to Ms. Andrews who teaches the dental tech program. Ms. Andrews knew a community organization the student could go to. I would have never known this but Margaret made the connection.

The provider meetings and the newsletter, made the STEM Tutors aware of special events that they could support. For example, many of the tutors were able to attend the Career Fair. This was helpful to the school and a valuable experience for the tutors.

Having a person there every day to help form a sense of community among partners is vital. Initially, other than 12+, I didn’t know any other providers at the school. I was really surprised about how many people were involved. It’s clear now that there’s a common goal of supporting KHSA students and that we’ll collaborate in order to provide better services. Through the provider meetings, Margaret brings everyone together, knows what they do and is able to help unify our goals and initiate collaborations.

Q: What are you looking forward to next year?

A: I’m looking forward to the expansion of the MyFreeTutor program. The pilot program has been successful and Mr. Willliams fully supports it. I’m looking forward to working with RSVP to increase the number of online tutors. In a Third Party Providers meeting I learned from Mr. Williams that we will have more computers and headphones and perhaps a larger room for the MyFreeTutor program next year. We are getting a lot of support from RSVP of Montgomery county and they have started attending the Third Party Providers meetings.

I’m looking forward to using what we have learned this year to better support KHSA with the STEM Tutors and the My Free Tutor online tutors. Also, this year Mr. Williams introduced Edmentum, which is a suite of online learning programs and I’m looking forward hearing how the STEM tutors can support that program. We’ll be meeting soon with Mr. Williams to find out how we can best support him next year. All of these strategies help teachers provide more individualized instruction. Students who get personal attention are more engaged and have better learning outcomes. It should be a great year!

You can learn more about the various programs mentioned here:

Philadelphia Math and Science Coalition: http://www.philaedfund.org/programs/advancing-education/philadelphia-math-science-coalition

RSVP Philadelphia: http://www.volunteermatch.org/search/org7452.jsp

12Plus: http://www.12plus.org/#takeflight

LULAC Philadelphia Educational Service Center: http://www.lnesc.org/site/321/Centers/Philadelphia-PA

EdMentum: http://www.edmentum.com/