A nonprofit in Paso Robles is working to connect kids with additional math help, all free of charge.
Larry Martinek started Mathnasium in 2002, and just last year, a local branch opened in Atascadero.
He says that this tutoring program is different than other options because it's designed to meet kids where they are, no matter how far behind they may be.
"When students come to us, they learn," said Martinek. "Because we are not going to play the fools game and say you're a seventh grader working at the third-grade level, so let's give you seventh-grade material, not knowing sixth, fifth, and potentially fourth and third. Kids get individual attention on exactly who they are."
Normally, parents would have to pay for these services, but the nonprofit "Team Paso" is working to connect low-income students who need the service, with it for free.
"Team Paso is really as many people in Paso Robles as would like to participate," said Orlando Gallegos, the managing director of Team Paso. "And the reason for it is what we look at as our desire and really an obligation to our kids who are in public school. We realize that mathematics has become so very important."
According to the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress, or CAASPP, only 29% of students from third grade to 11th met the academic standard for math.
Lewis Flamson Junior High Principal Audra Carr says this program is a great opportunity for students.
"We have a really high socioeconomic status of low income, and so it's really important that our students have that support at their disposal," said Carr. "We have after-school support too, but it's spread thin."
Students who participate in the Mathnasium program attend twice a week and get one-on-one help with a math curriculum that is intended specifically for that student.
"The room is set up so every student has a binder with their name on it," said Gallegos. "So they come up, grab the binder, and after their previous lesson their teacher prepares that binder for their next step in learning."
"We help kids to catch up, keep up, get ahead, and stay ahead," said Martinek. "Depending on where kids come to us on that spectrum, kids who are really behind, obviously our focus is going to be getting them caught up to that grade level. Those kids who are already there, or happily enough some kids are beyond their own grade level, then we can really rock with those kids."
The program is currently available to students from second grade to ninth grade, and they hope to expand that as they get more funding.
