This semester the Peterson Heritage Center is offering free tutoring sessions for various subjects Sunday through Thursday from 7 to 10 p.m. Biology, ESL, chemistry, math, physics and writing are offered on a rotating block throughout the week in the center. Tutoring is available to any U student, not just residents on campus.
Max Gallant, a student in materials science and engineering, and Samer Merchant, a graduate assistant, helps students with math, chemistry and physics on Tuesday nights.
Gallant said he started tutoring for two reasons.
“I like teaching people, and it’s an easy way to make money,” he said.
Although there were not any students asking for help from either tutor at the time, Gallant was ready for the job.
There are two tutors a night for these sessions, and the other tutors include William Richardson, a student in engineering, Sarah Ward, a student in anthropology, and Jeffery Lei, a research assistant at the school of medicine.
Both Gallant and Merchant said they are ready to help any student, but Gallant said he mostly helps motivated students.
“You don’t get the people who are failing their classes in here because it’s the people who want to do really well and try that come in,” Gallant said.
There are also free tutoring sessions in writing offered Thursday nights by Ward. The tutoring center is trying to introduce new subjects to their program, including more humanities-based sessions, such as writing.
Gallant said the reason most subjects offered in these free tutoring sessions are math- or science-related is because they are easier to tutor.
“Where writing is a talent with a wide array of possible answers, math has solid answers, so it’s easy to teach,” Gallant said.