Contact:
Angela Flumerfelt, 778.554.9995; angelakflumerfelt@gmail.com
Marianne Meadahl, PAMR, 778.782.9017; Marianne_Meadahl@sfu.ca

Photos on Flickr

A Simon Fraser University student-tutoring group is extending its reach beyond helping elementary students to working with those in local high schools.

The Friends of Simon, a tutoring project for Lower Mainland immigrant students, has this past year reached out to 65 high school students in Burnaby, Coquitlam and Surrey, thanks to support from Rogers Youth Fund.

Students reaping the benefits of the new initiative, dubbed Friends of Simon: Rogers are in addition to the nearly 200 elementary students involved in the program, says coordinator Angela Flumerfelt.

The support has expanded the group’s reach to seven sites, with the latest opening at Cariboo Hill secondary school in November.

More than 80 students from various SFU faculties, about half from the Faculty of Education, are tutoring for FoS. On average they spend twice a week with groups of two or three young students. They also help to modify homework to incorporate reading and thinking games that promotes English-speaking practice.

“Most of the students they are helping are from immigrant families who’ve just recently settled here,” says Flumerfelt. “In many cases the families don't have the English literacy skills to support the kids. Some of the student-tutors are themselves former immigrants now working to help others.”

Teachers in the 14 schools where the program is run laud their help. “This program is filling a huge gap - these kids now have a shot at being successful,” says Tina Damelio, a teacher and counsellor at Banting Middle School in Coquitlam.

“Once they learn English they really need help with basic subjects like reading, writing and math,” she adds. “It’s impossible for classroom teachers to spend the kind of time they need, so we look at this as a fantastic partnership.”

Friends of Simon, which received a Scotia Bank & United Way Celebration of Community award in 2011, is having an appreciation event on Dec. 4 from 9:30 – 11:30 a.m. in the Diamond Alumni Centre (Burnaby campus) to acknowledge its community ties and update on developments. Members of the media are welcome to attend.

Simon Fraser University is Canada's top-ranked comprehensive university and one of the top 50 universities in the world under 50 years old. With campuses in Vancouver, Burnaby and Surrey, B.C., SFU engages actively with the community in its research and teaching, delivers almost 150 programs to more than 30,000 students, and has more than 120,000 alumni in 130 countries.

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Simon Fraser University: Engaging Students. Engaging Research. Engaging Communities.