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Community Corner

"Homework Helpers" Celebrates Two Years of Free After School Tutoring

Volunteering as a tutor is a great way for local high school students to complete community service hour requirements.

"Homework Helpers", an after school volunteer program operated by local teens, has recently celebrated the second anniversary of its founding. The non-profit tutoring service continues to grow in success and numbers and has a mission of helping students in grades 1-8 with homework in all school subjects.

The program’s founder and coordinator, Manalapan resident Bryce Escobar, continues to give back to his community with this free program while providing a convenient way for his peers to obtain community service hours. 

“I looked at a bunch of in-town community services, but not a lot of them were fitting my schedule,” said Escobar, a varsity swimmer and a junior at Freehold Township High School. “So I said why not create my own?”

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The group meets from 4:30 p.m. to 5:45p.m. every Monday and Wednesday in the back of the children’s section at the at 125 Symmes Road in Manalapan.

On Monday, the group meets in the puppet theater section; on Wednesdays, they meet in the adjacent lighthouse area. The last session for the school year will be held on June 6.

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The program has adult supervision, but the child's guardian or parent must stay in the library while the child is being tutored. Walk-ins are welcomed but Escobar appreciates an e-mail prior to 4:00 p.m. at hwkhelpers@aol.com so that he can coordinate the right ratio of helpers to students.

Escobar also e-mails parents to remind them of any upcoming holiday breaks, days off, or half-days, when the group does not meet.

Escobar said that he thought of "Homework Helpers" after tutoring his younger brother who had some trouble understanding an assignment one night.

“I got the idea, hey, if I can help my brother with his homework, why not help other kids with their homework who really need it?” sad Escobar. He gathered a group of his friends and the program was born.

One of those friends is Nicole Ciullo, a junior at Howell High School.

“When a kid understands something and they express that to you and they’re grateful for your help, knowing that you’re making their life easier – it’s a very rewarding feeling,” said Ciullo.

Stephanie Shapiro, a junior at Manalapan High School, agreed. “I want to be a teacher. So this is great practice for me - working with kids and testing my ability to convey the material to them,” she said.

Homework Helpers is not sponsored by the library or any school, but is sponsored by Manalapan Township Parks and Recreation. Most of the students seeking aid come from the Manalapan-Englishtown Regional School District, and the volunteer tutors are students from the Freehold Regional High School District.

Escobar keeps track of his fellow helpers’ credit hours and provides documentation which can be presented to organizations, such as the National Honor Society.

Parks and Recreation distributes "Homework Helpers" flyers and informs teens that they can get involved through the Manalapan Project, a volunteer program run by Parks and Recreation. 

“The rec department has really helped 'Homework Helpers' with promotion efforts, so we want to thank them for that,” said Escobar.

“My kids always appreciate this program and [I do too]. I encourage all the kids to come and help,” said Mir Ali, whose daughters attend Manalapan-Englishtown Middle School. Ali said that "Homework Helpers" has helped his daughters gain more confidence in their work.  

Elise Taylor’s son, an eighth grader at MEMS, is currently learning algebra and needed reinforcement.

“He’s a fairly good student. He just needed a little extra help [with concepts] that I kinda forgot about,” she said. 

Meanwhile, Taylor's daughters, Renee, a fourth grader, and Emma, a second grader, work on reading and math skills with the helpers. Emma said she enjoys reading with her tutor, Manalapan High School freshman Rena Pinhas.

“It gives me a lot of patience and appreciation to know that I can actually help someone. And it’s good to see them progress,” said Pinhas.

Younger students benefit greatly from the program, needing just as much help and encouragement as older students. Seven-year-old Jay Patel of Applegate School in Freehold said, “I learn math, reading, and science. They help me. They make me learn about what I don’t understand.”

“We do a variety of exercises to help the kids really understand the subject material instead of ‘here’s a problem - do the answer,’” added Escobar. He feels that teachers will appreciate the group’s effort in helping students with skills that they can bring to the classroom.

Saavi Sharma, a freshman at Freehold Township High School, believes that students can sometimes understand the tougher concepts more easily when they receive tips from their peers. Her classmate and fellow helper, Jinal Patel, agrees.

“I used to get frustrated if my parents used to try to teach me because they learned it in an older way. I feel that it’s easier if someone your age or a little bit older than you teaches you because you can understand what they’re saying and they help you more,” said Patel.

“It’s something to do; usually I’m just home. It’s fun, and I like helping people,” Colin McDonough, a student at Colts Neck High School, said.  McDonough is currently working on a science project with, Rahul Sharma, a fifth grader at Clark Mills School.

Another helper present at this session was Matthew Hsu, a student at High Tech High School, who also received an e-mail from Escobar about joining. Hsu thought it would be a “wonderful opportunity” to fulfill his community service hours.

“I think they’re great. They’re smart, they’re patient, and they’re just a great source of help for my son,” said parent Susan Chin about the helpers.

Through "Homework Helpers", Escobar, a student in the Contemporary Global Issues Learning Center in his school, has tried to apply what he has learned about community-building.

“I think that was actually a big inspiring factor for me concerning 'Homework Helpers', in fact,” said Escobar. “People need help, and you know what? There has to be people there to help them; I do my best.”

 

Academically confident students in grades 9-12 who are interested in joining Homework Helpers can contact Bryce Escobar at hwkhelpers@aol.com.

To view Homework Helpers' flyer, click here.

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