South Piedmont Community College’s tutoring program has earned an advanced certification from an internationally recognized organization, signaling it meets high standards for tutor selection, training, service, and evaluation.
“We deeply understand what a vital resource the Academic Support Center is to our students, and we continually invest in staff training to improve the level of service we are able to provide. Certification is confirmation that our work is making a difference, placing our Academic Support Center among the world’s best tutoring programs,” said Director of Learning Supports MarianTeachey.
In 2023, the Academic Support Center first earned Level I certification from the internationally recognized College Reading and Learning Association. For more than 30 years CRLA has been a leader in learning assistance, reading, and academic support programs, with almost 1,300 members and over 2,000 certified training programs worldwide.
The certification confirmed that South Piedmont has developed a tutor training program that meets CRLA’s rigorous standards and has successfully completed the International Tutor Training Program Certification (ITTPC) peer review process. Achieving certification means that South Piedmont has met CRLA’s high standards for tutor selection, training, direct service, and evaluation.
South Piedmont has maintained its Level I certification since 2023, and just this month, has received Level II-Advanced certification. Achieving Level II certification requires approximately 20 hours of tutor training, at least 50 hours of documented tutoring experience, demonstration of advanced tutoring skills, continued professional development beyond Level I, and positive evaluations or observations of tutoring sessions.
Tutors earning Level I and Level II-Advanced certification include:
Vera Bradsher
Virginia Carter
Todd Hamilton
Dr. Andrew Lundeen
Brenda McDonald
Dr. Tim Reischman
Daniel Steinberg
Mark Wesley
Teachey encourages students to take advantage of their internationally recognized Academic Support Center.
“We know, both from research and personal experience, that students who attend tutoring sessions with trained tutors perform better academically than those who are tutored by untrained tutors,” she said.
“We pride ourselves in providing the very best experience to our students and in helping them reach their academic goals.”