I teach 4th grade and the support I've gotten for my students through Embudo Valley Tutoring has been irreplaceable! EVTA provided caring, knowledgeable tutors for my students when they had to work remotely during the pandemic. The tutors and I were able to work together to provide individualized academic support and authentic daily check-ins. This team effort was crucial to the students' success and well-being. Today, we are back in the classroom (yay!) and EVTA continues to provide high quality academic support to many of our underserved students. Thank you EVTA! Couldn't have done it without you!
My name is Lisa Woolery and I am currently the Director of Special Education at Anansi Charter School. I have been a colleague of Eva Behrens for many years and have tremendous respect for her dedication to Embudo Valley Tutoring Association (EVTA), a non-profit she founded and runs with such finesse. I reflect with a great deal of gratitude for years and many hours of service EVTA has provided, for the students with learning difference and exceptions, who are in need of exceptional services. I have observed the demand of reaching students where they are at, academically and emotionally. The tutors are able to see the needs of the students and in addition raise the bar in their learning and giving them the self-confidence to be successful, when often their struggles have impacted their self-esteem in a general education setting. Many of my most profoundly challenged students, who were supported through EVTA are now proudly in college and achieving their dreams. These dreams may have not been possible without the presence of EVTA program and the tutoring that made a difference in their lives. If you are on the fence of choices for funding or supporting, please think again about supporting the EVTA program, knowing you may impact the future of a child that will benefit from the program.
My name is Annalise Zosel, I am the literacy coach/reading interventionist at Anansi Charter School. Our K-8th grade students love working with their Embudo tutor each week. Our tutor is kind, responsive, and dedicated to meeting our students' learning needs. Foundational literacy acquisition takes a significant amount of practice. This year, our Embudo Valley Tutor supports small-group reading and writing instruction so that we can provide students with an additional layer of support and reinforcement. I have heartfelt gratitude to Embudo Valley Tutoring for growing the hearts and minds of our young learners!
As a special education teacher, I have shared the work of EVTA and recommended their wonderful tutors to many families over the years. The tutors I have collaborated with have been caring, creative and supportive of the needs of the students and families they serve. Many families have developed long-term partnerships with the EVTA tutors who work with their children over the course of several semsters or school years. In our rural community, access to this caliber of academic and social-emotional support for our students is such a gift. Thank you, EVTA!
During the Covid19 pandemic I had retired from classroom teaching and decided to offer my expertise to EVTA with tech support for teachers who were having to offer remote learning to students. The director asked me to mentor students as well as fellow tutors which was my introduction into this organization that is doing an amazing job, one student at a time. Since 2020, I've been able to tutor remotely, in classrooms, one-on-one and have also helped tutors with tech support as well as assist the director with program support and website updates.
I have found the ttutors and the urotring services from Embudo Valley to be exceptional. The students look forward to their time with the tutors and have shown improvement in their academics. THe Nurturing Center looks forward to continue our work with the EVT to support our children at Enos Garcia.
Our children who are now 12 and 14 have been receiving excellent tutoring from EVTA for a number of years. They got extra help with Math and Science while in public school and excelled. Since they have been homeschooling they have gotten incredible support in Math, Science and Language Arts. Both of our children have documented learning and social differences and the help they have gotten has been incredibly sensitive and tailored to their specific needs. We have so much appreciation for EVTA and all the Tutors that have worked with our kids. But most especially Lorraine Edge Castillo who worked in enthusiastic and creative ways to always meet our kids interests and tutoring needs. In our area it would be very hard to find any academic help with EVTA's support. Or to be able to afford it! Our kids are both doing very well and love their specific learning/class arrangements. We're grateful that EVTA is here working in our community supporting our children and their love of learning and academic excellence!
Ms. Martinez tutored 19 students in grades 2-5 at Peñasco Elementary as part of our partnership with the Embudo Valley Tutoring Association. She worked with teachers and the community schools coordinator to get referrals for students, and she did regular assessments to track how her tutoring students were improving. Based on those assessments and conversations with teachers, she modified the support she gave to the students. By the end of the year, the students she worked with demonstrated greater growth in every subject on their MAPS and iStation testing than students who did not receive tutoring services from the EVTA. Ms. Martinez and the EVTA have been an invaluable resource for our students and teachers.
My son, Estevan, has been tutored by EVTA since he was in second grade. He is now moving to 5th grade and he still enjoys and thrives meeting with his tutor. There are several goals we have worked on together with his tutor over the years, such as social emotional skills, math, reading and comprehension skills. He talks about the awesome books he reads with his tutor and he is engaged in every meeting time. Ms. Marta is amazing and she knows how to pull the best out of a student. I've seen my son grow and learn how to carry on an articulate conversation. Currently, they are working on vocabulary and story comprehension. Ms. Marta enriches and provides material that my son is interested in such as geography and space. I will continue to utilize EVTA and highly encourage other parents to do so as well. They are there to help students become life-long learners and that is just awesome! Thank you EVTA!
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Embudo Valley Tutoring has been monumental in assisting my first and second grade students at Velarde Elementary. I depend on the added value that the highly effective tutors bring when helping my students. There are five students in my class that are benefiting from the one on one instruction. Working with the tutor, we have created a wonderful relationship between the three of us; student, tutor, and teacher. I think this has helped my students with not only academics, but has created a safe and caring "online" space where students know they are cared for, respected and valued. Every Monday, the students are excited to see their tutor and have that one on one, special time to express, learn and grow. I love EVTA and what their mission is and so thankful to have them as part of my classroom and community!
Reviews received so far in spring 2023:
Rio Arriba County
Parent 1: My son wasn't doing too well with math, with reading or spelling tests. After being with Megan I noticed a huge difference in how good he was getting with those three things. His excitement to come home and show his work and what he learned with his tutor was definitely a big change. I feel like she helped him so much. I really appreciate EVTA for caring so much about our children and helping them as much as possible.
Parent 2: Marta has helped my son so much with his abc's and 123's. He has learned to pay attention more and gets more from learning with his one on one time with Marta.I hope he can continue to go to Marta she has helped him so much and he is doing so much better in school.
Teacher:
This student has severe learning differences. At the beginning of the year, he was unable to hold a pencil correctly, did not know what letters were or sounds or numbers. At the end of this year, he is proficient in letter recognition and sounds. He is reading very simple 3 word books and is able to participate in classroom activities without bouncing around the room and is so proud of himself when he participates in the ELA lessons. With his differences, the EVTA tutor had to find the right path for him to express himself and participate in discussions. The change was amazing. We are all impressed with his progress.
Taos County:
Parent 1: It is such a huge help to have someone outside our family to have someone on time to focus on his reading etc. Our son has improved so much with your help and for that we are grateful.
Parent 2: My child was struggling in math. His grades were suffering and his confidence was at rock bottom. He felt defeated by math. Since beginning his tutoring sessions and seem a 360° turn around for the better. His tutor encourages him, makes math fun and explains it in a way that he can truly understand. His math scores have increased significantly. When he doesn't understand he has someone to ask and work it out with. Most importantly he no longer feels defeated by math, he now has the confidence that he can do it! Tutoring has been an invaluable resource for my son. We're truly grateful for the time he's spent with his tutor!
My son was really struggling in math. He was frustrated and defeated, and his grades were suffering. He had really withdrawn from his school lessons he was falling behind and it was impacting him negatively.
We were tied in with a Janet, a tutor at Embudo Valley Tutoring...from the first meeting there was an instant connection and the one on one time changed my child's outlook and attitude.
He was able to communicate to her where he needed assistance and what he didn't understand and she helped him work through it. She explained things in a setting that was stress free and non judgemental.
He immediately let me know that he felt more confident after working with his tutor. After a few meetings his demeanor changed and his confidence was up. He felt more comfortable with his math skills. Now he knows that if he is having a difficult time he can bring that to his lesson and work through it.
Having access to this resource has been a game changer for my son. He is more confident and has a much more positive outlook when it comes to learning math. It's also made him feel more confident reaching out for help when he's having a difficult time understanding his lessons.
We are so grateful to Janet and Embudo Valley Tutoring for their assistance and we look forward to continuing the relationship.
This has been an invaluable resource and confidence builder for my child. I'm so grateful for their help!
We are so grateful for all the support and help our daughter is receiving from her two tutors. Our daughter, age 6, is homeschooling 1st grade. She meets her tutors 3 hours/week, with enthusiasm. The tutors are doing a great job helping her with the academic requirements. Their approach is creative and they really help guide us (parents) with exercises and projects to do at home. We are also very grateful for EVTA's support with a mid-year meeting in order to make an evaluation and set up goals for the 2nd semester. It is such a great experience for us , parents, to homeschool for our 1st time with that precious support from those fabulous tutors. Valentine & Pascal
My grandson Elijah has been receiving zoom tutoring in reading and math from EVTA with Janet LaFaille since the pandemic hit in the spring of 2020. When the students went back to in person school this year in 4th grade, Elijah continued receiving Special Ed support in addition to Janet's zoom tutoring twice a week. At the end of January, his SPED teacher contacted me with the news that Elijah was being exited from their services because he is testing at a proficient level in reading and math. His teacher also confirmed that he is one of her top students. We are so grateful for all the support that EVTA and Janet have given Elijah so that he could be a confident and successful fourth grader.
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Tutoring in reading with Janet has helped my grandson Elijah a lot! Before he started he used to always sound out words from right to left and now he knows how to tap out each sound and put together a word correctly. It has raised his confidence in both reading and spelling and he enjoys his zoom time. The other day on our way to visit his grandma, he was even reading road signs and he never used to do that! Janet has been an essential part of his improved attitude and reading skills!
I am a single mom of two homeschooled girls ages 9 and 11. This year the Embudo Valley Tutoring Association was able to offer tutors to homeschoolers. It made a tremendous difference in or lives! My girls meet with their tutors 4 hours/ week, receive homework and assessments regularly and progress through their grade requirements so much more efficiently then before! The tutors work with me to establish and adjust the subjects of study and focus areas. The girls are thriving academically, and my life as a homeschooling mom is so much easier now! I can not begin to express my gratitude!
Our son Luis has been receiving reading therapy for nearly two years from Billie Bolton working with the Embudo Valley Tutoring Association. Luis works with Billie twice a week for an hour. Since he began working with Billie, he has made considerable improvement. We are so grateful for the reading therapy he is receiving, as it has been instrumental in his reading ability, desire and growing confidence. I think it is also good to note that we live in a rural area where it is difficult to find resources like this right at our fingertips. It is so convenient to have Billie, his tutor, just down the road from us and it is a very approachable and comforting feeling to have her support as well as this wonderful service in our community, free of charge to us. We have tried other reading and tutoring options in the past and none have been as effective or consistant as the help we are currently receiving through the Embudo Valley Tutoring Association. Luis is truly starting to progress in his reading, writing and phonemic awareness starting from the ground up with the multi-sensory Sounds In Syllables program. Luis is not an intuitive reader, and the SIS program has helped create the foundation he needs before moving on. More recently he read a natural history book about dinosaurs for a school assignment, and we were very impressed by the ease with which he read the material that would have been almost impossible for him to have read at this time last year. It is imperative that he continue to work with Billie and that this service continue to be offered in our community. Jus
I teach a 5th/6th grade combination class and have had the opportunity of witnessing the power of tutoring! Observable differences include improved reading scores, heightened confidence, and an overall positive effect on how the student(s) view reading. A good tutor-student connection is like a really great recipe. EVTA is definitely cooking up success in its choosing of personable, patient, culturally responsive, and knowledgeable tutors for our students in need. Thank you!!
The EVTA tutors have been an incredible source of support to both students and teachers as we have transitioned to on campus learning. Students have had to miss school intermittently due to quarantine requirements and the tutors have been able to step in to maintain the bridge from school to home, so that students are able to keep up with their assignments, receive instructional support, and continue to receive assistance as they work toward re-integrating with their class after missing multiple days of school. In addition, this tutorial support has relieved the stress for parents who are juggling work, illness, quarantines, caring for their families, and supporting their kids with their school work. We plan to continue to maintain this important relationship and service for our school community. We love the consistent and effective support that EVTA provides. Michele Hunt, Director, Anansi Charter School
Written by my client's mom:
Embudo Valley Tutoring has provided my daughter with tutoring opportunities she wouldn't otherwise have access to and I am extremely grateful for this blessing. I am a single mom with limited resources and have a vivacious little girl that struggles with both reading and math. She has the spirit of a warrior and wants to be brilliant but has a tough time retaining and applying the information she receives. At this point, she recognizes her challenges with academics and her confidence has dissipated as a result. Embudo has some amazing
educators on their team but Janet LaFaille is the best and absolute dream! She has given my daughter a reason to enjoy and desire reading. My kiddo actually looks forward to working with Janet and her confidence is noticeably returning. She lights up when it's time for her tutoring lessons with Janet, you can see her wheels turning and the will to want to understand what's being taught. Janet's passion, care and knowledge is the reason my daughter is showing progress. Embudo Valley tutoring is absolutely necessary and a very much appreciated educational resource for Taos.
My daughter was struggling with reading and my daughters teacher referred us to tutoring. My daughter has improved in her reading since she started tutoring. She now more confident in reading out loud.
I am the current director and a member of the board of this non-profit and would like to share some of the comments that we have received on our 2020-2021 surveys. Before I begin I would like to note that I rated our organization with four stars, because our fifth star is reserved for when we are able to realize a child advocacy or social justice advocacy branch as part of the services provided by our organization
Comments from students::
My tutor is a very special person, she was helpful and would always make time for me. She read with me and always chose books/topics that I would enjoy. Thank you.
I like how we always have fun while doing the work!
(My tutor) was always very nice and helpful. She would explain to me until I would understand.
My tutor helped me feel better about writing and now it's easy to finish my school assignments with less worry and stress.
I like how my tutor helps me stay organized and teaches me new and interesting things.
From parents:
Our son's tutor has made a world of difference for him during remote learning. He was able to relate to an adult, that showed caring, compassion, and support in an area of need. THANK YOU! We appreciate the program and your support.
(The tutor) has been great. Her encouragement has really helped my student to not just grow academically, but also to grow his confidence.
My fifth grade daughter truly enjoyed (her tutor) both as a tutor and as a friend. From my perspective as a full time working from home parent, I didn't have much time to dedicate to assisting my daughter. So I am extra grateful for the assistance that Embudo Valley Tutoring Association provided.
My granddaughter had the opportunity during the virtual school year to be tutored by EVTA. She looked forward to the days she had tutoring. She had a great relationship with her tutor. Her reading level went up substantially. When (my grand daughter) hear (her tutor) would be in the summer school program she decided to attend. I am very pleased with the tutoring program and it worked very well online.
From teachers:
This survey is for my tutor , who tutored our San Juan Elementary first graders. She had an excellent rapport with our students and was also very patient and understanding with them.
The tutor's technological experience and expertise allowed for greater student engagement through visuals, presentations and videos. Her experience with technology allowed me the teacher to assign more enriching and challenging tasks for our first graders online.
The tutoring services provided are professional and individualized!
I think the mentors and tutors were critical to the success of many students in 7th and 8th grade. I hope we can continue to utilize them for "math study groups" or something of the like.
Tutoring received this year has been invaluable for students; they really look forward to the extra help, attention, and support.
EVTA tutors and mentors were paramount to the success of many of our students during remote learning. The mentors and tutors were able to provide consistent support to students with their academics but also were able to teach students how to navigate remote platforms. They helped bring those kids out of the shadows and kept them accounted for.
I teach a 3rd and 4th grade combination class. This year due to the pandemic and school closures I worried students weren't always getting as much small group and one-on-one support as they might have needed. Embudo Valley Tutoring Association stepped up to the challenge of remote learning and with their help and dedication we were able to ensure that students got more support. While I taught my 4th grade math class, 3rd graders were able to get support from a tutor in a Google Meet workgroup on their independent practice and vice-versa. Students who needed extra support were also able to get help via one-on-one tutoring. Thanks to the dedication of the tutors and the Embudo Valley Tutoring Association students were not only able to be successful in this unprecedented year but they also were able to thrive!
My daughter needs extra support and she gets it thru this awesome organization! They work with her teachers to create a plan and they meet my daughter just where she is - love them!
Embudo Valley Library and Embudo Valley Tutoring Association are long term partners in
delivering youth literacy and numeracy supports and programming to our rural community. We have partnered for over 10 years to deliver afterschool programming to our local K-6 elementary school population. The
program provides high quality afterschool care, including STEM, arts, crafts, and cultural
content for at risk children and families.
Embudo Valley Library further supports the work of Embudo Valley Tutoring Association by
providing public space where tutors can meet and work with their students. We also provide physical infrastructure support like office space and a copy machine.
The missions of Embudo Valley Library and Embudo Valley Tutoring Association are closely
related. We have worked together building collaborative, long lasting programs and sharing
resources to improve educational outcomes in our community.
I have twins and it was startling to hear from the
school that passing my son to the next grade was
in jeopardy. It was really hard to motivate him. It
seemed that he would compare himself to his
sister & feel defeated that he wasn't as good as
her with reading. He didn't even want to try.
Now he's been working with a tutor for almost 2
years. The individual attention provided is such a
luxury. Last year , his tutor helped him write his own
play & perform for the class. It was a great way to motivate him. Directing
his own play came naturally to his personality, although usually the school
environment allows him far less control. He loved getting all the laughs and
attention. I think as soon as it ended he mentioned he wanted to write
another one.
His reading test scores by the end of 2018-19 year were great. We're very thankful to have the tutoring
My oldest started tutoring in
math last year and it helped
him throughout his 8th grade year. Upon the onset of
his freshmen year we continued weekly tutoring with
EVTA. My daughter also began tutoring with at
the onset of her 6th grade year. Both have seen
improvement with their math skills. My youngest
participates in the After School Program the EVTA
does in partnership with the Embudo Valley Library.
He gets assistance with his homework, if need be,
and educational activities. EVTA is a wonderful
program that is doing a fabulous service for the
community. I live outside of the Embudo Valley in
Velarde and the services are available to my family. I love what has
developed within this association and the heart it has for the community,