The Art of Smart Tutoring, Inc.

Tonight, I'm thinking of all the students, faculty, staff, and admin at FSU and their families. I'm thinking of the lives lost, the people injured, and the trauma of it all.

I'm also thinking about the kinship and the peace we so desperately need more of in our hearts, minds, and world.

The following poem has given me something to hold onto and ponder, beyond the news stories and the same tired words we hear in the wake of school shootings.

🕊️

There is a calling in the ears of men –
A wind that whistles in the city street,
Calling them back, to long-forgotten ways,
Blowing the sands of havoc 'round their feet.

There is a vision in the eyes of men –
Of fair wide fields, where gleams the honest plough,
Guided by hands of brotherhood and peace,
Far other than the hands that guide it now.

There is a struggle in the hearts of men –
A groping of the lonely in the fight,
Urging them on a road but dimly seen,
Towards faint music and a distant light.

O may that music swell, that light increase,
And hearts be strengthened in the inward strife,
That men may hear, and see, and struggle on,
Seek a new world, and find a truer life.

- Philip Britts, 1946

Big improvements are coming to the ACT!

Here's everything you and your students should know about the changes:

1) More time per question
2) 4 instead of 5 options on Math multiple choice
3) Science section is now optional (recommended if you plan to pursue a STEM major)
4) Option to test on a computer or on paper

Note: changes 1-3 will be seen on the April 2025 DIGITAL test, and will be integrated into the paper test by September 2025

So, this is most relevant for current Juniors in high school and younger.

As the burden of college tuition grows, there's good news for middle class families!

https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2024/12/11/college-free-tuition-middle-class/

Applying to schools in Florida or nearby States? Many schools have updated their early action deadlines due to recent hurricanes.

It's not always easy to find the right information, so make sure that your deadline comes directly from the University and not from another website, article, or even Common App.

Below are the updated deadlines for UCF, FAU, and FSU

I predict we will continue to see schools returning to standardized test requirements.

After 14+ years of working with college applicants, I have come to believe that the SAT and ACT do serve an important role in helping students demonstrate their readiness for college.

What are your thoughts? Do you think schools should require test scores?

Yale to Require Standardized Test Scores for Admissions Officials said test-optional policies might have harmed students from lower-income families.

This time of year is always a big one in my line of work as a College Admissions & Scholarship Consultant.

And while there are still plenty of wins to come, I'm particularly thrilled to share that between just two of my students this year, they have earned a total of $341,712 in tuition scholarships.

One earned a highly competitive full scholarship to the University of Miami (holy cow that school is expensive!) and the other earned $100K from the University of Vermont.

I am PROUD! Proud of them for sticking it out through very challenging and time consuming application processes, and proud of myself for the commitment I have made for 14+ years to show young people that their aspirations and options in life can be so much bigger than they imagined.

The world and its problems work hard to weigh us down, but I am grateful that I get to work with kids like this who fill me with hope!

Hey parents!

43% of the Class of 2023 didn't meet any of the ACT's college-readiness benchmarks (a significant decline from past years).

What are your thoughts, concerns, or ideas?

ACT test scores for US students drop to new 30-year low High school students’ scores on the ACT college admissions test have dropped to their lowest in more than three decades, showing a lack of student preparedness for college-level coursework, according to the nonprofit organization that administers the test.

There's good news and bad news.

The good news: the FAFSA application (which has long been notoriously horrible and confusing) is about to get much easier to fill out!

The bad news: changes to Expected Family Contribution rules could mean less aid for middle class families.

Never fear, though! There's ALWAYS a pathway to college that doesn't have to include drowning in debt.

College Is About To Get A Lot More Expensive For Middle Class Families The FAFSA, the primary financial aid application used by colleges and universities in the United States, will undergo a transformative set of changes this fall.

PSA!

To the class of 2023:

Soon, you're going to be starting your college journey (yay! Woo! Eek!). It's exciting and also a little scary.

No matter where you're going, I can guarantee there are many things you don't know about how things work in the college world.

Many people will learn the hard and painful way (I was this person. It was not fun. I'm still a little mad at my Marketing Professor and myself for not knowing what to do when he gave me a D on my final🤦🏼‍♀️). Hopefully you will be better prepared!

Join me and Elizabeth next week for a Zoom call where we'll be talking about the big things every college student wishes they would have known before starting school.

What No One Tells You About College (ZOOM)
Wednesday, May 24
5 PM EST
$50 per student

Comment below to sign up!

While interviewing for a job when I was in grad school, my interviewer was incredibly skeptical about how I managed to run my business while pursuing two full-time programs.

I remember it vividly:

"So you're telling me you have a tutoring business, are getting two masters here, and intern 20 hours per week? Bu****it."

Yikes. What a way to start an interview.

I tried to explain that through years of tutoring, I'd become an expert at learning, but they didn't seem to understand or accept my response.

In retrospect, I should have just showed them this quote.

Maybe they would have, at the very least, thought about their own role as a college professor 😜

Out of office! Back to work October 9. Till then, ciao!

For FSU applicants:

If you've applied through Common App and are seeing on the FSU Status Check page that your essay is missing, here's why and what to do!

This information came directly from the FSU Office of Admissions.

I'm hiring!

I'm currently looking for a part-time assistant to help with day-to-day tasks and some client management.

The ideal candidate:

-familiar with Zoom & Google Suite (especially Google Sheets and Google Docs)
-enjoys problem solving and learning new things
-does best with some guidance but prefers the freedom to work without hand-holding
-has a heart for service and young people
-likes to bring their creative ideas to the table
-loves organizing

You'll be helping me with things like billing, client communications, tracking student progress, and organizing/developing simple systems and tools to help the business run smoothly and efficiently.

Depending on your interests, you may even get the opportunity to meet with students as we help them during one of the most pivotal times in their lives: preparing to go to college!

I am not looking for someone who believes themselves to be an expert, but rather one who embraces the idea of being a life-long learner.

Rate: $35/hr, paid weekly

Hours: flexible, remote, starting with 5-15 hours per week

Education: High School diploma and required, prefer some college or college degree

Experience: work experience required

Does this sound like the perfect fit for you or someone you know? Send resume or a brief email outlining your interest and qualifications to [email protected]