Amy Li and Liv Nam didn’t want to spend their summer getting coffee and making copies at an office. The two Bellevue natives and current Ivy Leaguers sought a job that made a difference.
This summer, Li and Nam are getting hands-on experience to apply their academic skills in a teaching format, and also build a business from the ground up.
Li and Nam are two of many Ivy League students participating in the Ivy League Insiders program, a SAT prep and tutoring course that offers a more personal touch for students.
“I know I personally care about people a lot,” said Li, a 2009 graduate of Newport High School and a junior at the University of Pennsylvania. “I’m going to be invested in how my students do. I’ll be looking at every student and trying to figure out what they need and trying to nurture their strengths.”
Both Li and Nam, a graduate of Bellevue High School and soon to be a senior at Brown University, have experienced desk-locked internships, and wanted to be out in the field, seeing the fruits of their labor.
This program gives them the chance to do just that. Ivy League Insiders, run under the umbrella of Revolution Prep, combines a prescribed program with highly gifted and well performing students who can relate to the pressure of the standardized testing process.
“Our instructors are closer to the exam, and they remember how stressful the college admission process is,” said Ivy League Insiders Program Director Jane Gagnon. “They can offer mentorship to students going through the process now.”
Gagnon said the program instructors keep track of profits and losses for their branch, as well control a large part of the marketing, giving instructors some business experience as well as the classroom time.
Nam and Li both received 30 hours of teacher training from Revolution Prep. They were educated on the curriculum
The teachers are left with a high degree of freedom in the course. Li and Nam’s courses run in several sets throughout the summer. They decided to focus much of their energy on individual effort. They want to tailor the class to the students, both to teach them the academic basics, but also to make sure their mind-frame is correct to take the high-stress that determines much of many students’ futures.
The pair hopes their background and teamwork can help make things easy for the students. Nam and Li, while both Bellevue students, hadn’t met until they entered the program. Both have tutoring backgrounds in high school and college. They play off each other’s experiences. Nam took SAT prep courses in high school, so she can say what she did and didn’t like about the larger classes. Li can impart what types of things she would have liked to know in advance of the test.
Both say they are extremely driven and excited about the academic process. In fact, they often worked so hard they were surprised when their classmates didn’t. But Li and Nam are hoping their work ethic will rub off, and students will learn how far good results on these tests can take them.
“I just want them to see the bigger world,” Nam said.
The first of three sessions of the classes began June 21. Students will have three classes a week for three to five weeks. That includes five practice exams. The next set of classes, taught by Li begins July 8 with sessions on Monday, Wednesday and Friday through Aug. 5. Li will also run a course on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from July 29 to Aug. 26. Nam will be teaching Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday courses starting July 8. Group courses cost $599, and hybrid courses that feature more individual time cost $899. Nam and Li said they could work with people on the finances if needed.
For more information, visit Li and Nam’s site at www.bellevueivySAT.webs.com.
