Written By: Sahara Stevens, Talon Staff Reporter 

Hood River Valley High School is creating new ways to help its students see their potential and help them succeed. Organized by the National Honors Society and their adviser, Jennifer Schlosser, Peer Tutoring is a brand-new outreach program at the school. Peer Tutoring is where some high school students are being trained to tutor and will be available for other high school students. This program is available to all students and provides help with any subject except advanced classes such as AP Chemistry and AP Physics.

Students who need tutoring can talk to their counselors or access a request form that is available on the Hood River Valley High School website. The link can be found on the homepage, guidance page, or on teacher pages and is called A+ Peer Tutoring. Also, throughout the school, QR codes will be posted and are available as additional request forms. The tutoring takes place primarily during fourth and eighth period and after-school. If a student is willing to be contacted, he or she can set up specific times for tutoring. Teachers can also access the request form if they would like a tutor in their class.

The tutoring takes place in the HRV Library. In the library, there is a yellow wall with “Peer Tutoring” written on it. The table in front of the wall will have a student tutor sitting there. In addition to the section of the library, three computers are designated just for the tutoring service. Jennifer Schlosser, peer tutoring adviser, explains, “The computers are available to the tutoring so that way if the library is full, the student(s) can still receive the help they need.” Although the computers are available for any help, they can also be used for a Khan Academy study session for students who are preparing for the SAT/ACT. The tutors include the NHS members and AVID trained tutors. Ann Zuehlke and Jennifer Schlosser are the two main advisers to the Peer Tutoring Program.

Schlosser also states, “Although it is new, we already have some students and tutors matched up and the program is slowly coming together.” she continued, “I’m hoping to turn the Peer Tutoring into a class next year. Students can sign up and we would have tutors for every class period. I would train the tutors and send them out to help.” There are three main goals that the program has. The first goal is to increase access to tutors so that students can still get help even if teachers aren’t available or schedule conflicts arise. The second goal stems from research that students learn better from other students. Lastly, this program wants to teach high school students and tutors to become more empathetic towards other students who may be struggling. They want the students to realize that just because something may be easy for them, doesn’t necessarily mean that it is easy for someone else.

This program is very new to HRV and is still being organized. In the coming weeks, the program will be more stable and have more information coming out. Stay updated with the HRV website and look out for posters around the school for more information. Talk to your counselor or find an NHS student and ask about the program.

Below is a video of Jennifer Schlosser going onto the HRVHS website and accessing the Peer Tutoring Request Form and explaining how to fill it out and how to submit a request.