In light of the sudden onset of COVID-19 and distance learning, MVHS juniors Chris Liu and Katherine Healzer have made strides towards helping their fellow students with possible academic struggles. Through their program dubbed Student2Student Tutoring, Liu and Healzer offer tutoring services for math, science, English, and history completely free of charge. According to the tutors, their mission during quarantine is to provide students in need of help with collaborative instruction. 

“We’re just a community looking to facilitate learning during the pandemic,” Liu said, “and most of all support our peers who are having trouble adapting to an online environment.”

From nine a.m. until four p.m. every Wednesday, the two students along with volunteer tutors accept students to tutor via Google Meet. Because Wednesday is a day scheduled for asynchronous learning, meaning teachers do not schedule any Zoom calls, students will be free to attend the tutoring sessions. 

“It’s just an honor to work with all the students and all the tutors who have gone above and beyond to make a difference in our community,” Healzer said.

Volunteer tutors are asked to participate in an interview with either Liu or Healzer before they are able to help out. However, any and all students are welcome to apply for the position, Healzer and Liu said. 

Healzer’s fellow tutors describe her as being “very passionate about education,” and say she took the initiative in starting the program. 

According to Liu and Healzer, the main focus of the Student2Student program is ensuring that everyone feels comfortable going to them for help. “It’s really for everyone,” Liu said. “You can trust that our tutors know what they’re doing and that you will get the help you need.”

Both Liu and Healzer explained how passionate they are about lending a helping hand to those who may not be comfortable with the current state of technology and may have difficulty with the learning environment. 

“It’s really rewarding how good they felt and how we feel when making a difference in another person’s learning,” Healzer said.