Arianna G.

Meet Arianna

• Speaks English, Italian, and Spanish
• Comfortable with pets
• Has a car

Paul Ransom, the founder of my school, once wrote that we “are in the world not so much for what [we] can get out of it as for what [we] can put into it”. I have taken these words to heart all throughout my high school experience. Ever since sophomore year, I have been going to Tucker Tutoring, a program where I teach and help fifth graders who are coming from low-income communities. I was helping my students with their math homework, yet surprisingly some of them didn’t even know their multiplication tables. How were these kids supposed to be successful in life, when they didn’t even know their basic mathematical principles? As I tried to find fun ways for my students to learn their tables, I realized there lay an even bigger problem. They weren’t taking the classes seriously. They didn’t see any benefit in studying.  And so, my Read more mission began.  I knew I wasn’t going to just be their math tutor, I was going to make sure that these kids had the vision of what they could become through education. I made Silas and Nicory, my students, jot down flashcards and at the same time, I asked them what their dream job was. Silas wanted to be a doctor and Nicory wanted to be a cop. Perfect, I thought. By explaining and constantly reinforcing that only people who studied could become doctors and cops, Silas and Nicory finally began to take school a little more seriously.  Every Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday that I went to Tucker, we reviewed the flashcards and I showed them a new math tip. When Nicory finally understood long division, I made him feel like he was a step closer to earning his “badge”. One time Silas was struggling with his nine’s table so I showed him the multiples of nine trick. When he finally retained it, I told him that he had won his “lab coat”. All of these actions were little means to make them understand the power of education. At the end of the school year, Silas and Nicory’s math skills improved significantly, and so did their interest for learning. I hope that in the future they continue to believe that through education and hard work they can be whatever they want to be.  It’s easy to take education for granted because we seem so entrenched in our routines, but it is a privilege to have the opportunity to expand our knowledge in pursuit of our passions. Helping these students has reminded me of how much I value learning and it only inspired me to encourage a similar feeling among other people.

Trust & safety

Experience