Youth study without distractions

Photo by Ellie Spaulding

From left to right: Current ALC students Rodger, Chris, Zach, Jonathan, Lisa, and Jessy, with tutor Eric Trinka.

Middle school is tough. The cliques, the bullying, gym class, the social expectations, and trying to fit into one peer group while being shunned and disregarded by another, can shove academics out of the picture.

That's where the Alternative Learning Center, located in the basement of EMU's library, comes in.

"The ALC is not for students who have disabilities," says Sandy Whetzel, the director of the ALC. "It is for middle school students who, for whatever reason, are not being successful in a regular public school environment. Sometimes students find too much stimulation in a large school and simply need a program with fewer distractions and more one on one attention."

The ALC can serve up to eight students, two from each middle school in Rockingham Country. The program currently has six. The middle school administrators select which students will be placed in the ALC. Many are chosen because of discipline issues or sometimes because of a court mandate, according to Jonalyn Denlinger, assistant director for ALC.

Their basic curriculum includes math, science, reading, language arts and social studies. A regular day for students in the ALC begins at 9 a.m. and continues until 1 p.m. Their tutors develop lesson plans for them which follow the Rockingham Public County School requirements and work very closely with the students, becoming not only instructors, but mentors and role models as well.

Denlinger has worked with ALC for two years and has tutored students in the past. As assistant director for ALC, she is responsible for finding tutors to join the program. Candidates must be dedicated to what they teach, but more importantly, to the growth of the students in the program.

"It is not easy work," Denlinger says. "There are challenges and times of frustration. But the work is so rewarding. There are many more good times than difficult times. Every morning I wake up and look forward to my work."

The tutors are paid for their services, but Whetzel feels that many of the tutors go beyond what is required of them by bringing snacks to the kids, rewarding them for good work habits and by just spending extra time with them. The ALC looks for tutors who are caring, but can exercise authority when it is necessary.