April 4, 2023
East Texas Baptist University’s Office of Academic Success and Academic Center for Excellence (ACE) Tutoring Lab was awarded certification as a Level 1 certified tutor training program by the internationally recognized College Reading and Learning Association (CRLA) on Monday, March 27.
For more than thirty years, CRLA has been a leader in learning assistance, reading, and academic support programs, with almost 1,300 members and over 2,000 certified training programs worldwide.
ETBU’s ACE Lab provides free tutoring resources to students for all of the University’s general education and major-specific gateway courses. The tutoring lab is open more than 20 hours each week and provides over 1,100 one-on-one appointments every school year. Tutors also work closely with faculty members to provide Supplemental Instruction and large group test preparation sessions in an effort to create strong study habits in ETBU’s undergraduate population.
“The creative process for developing an internationally certified training program was both challenging and rewarding,” ETBU Student Success Specialist Jimmy Walker shared. “I am grateful to be able to help provide this program as a resource for our tutors to be recognized for all of their hard work. They deserve the recognition.”
ETBU’s Office of Academic Success has worked hard to develop a tutor training program that meets CRLA’s rigorous standards and has successfully completed the International Tutor Training Program Certification (ITTPC) peer review process.
“Our tutors are very grateful to become certified," ETBU Student Success Specialist Josh Broussard said. “They put in a lot of hard work in their disciplines in order to be considered for their positions, and the certification has been rewarding for them.”
Achieving certification means the team has met CRLA’s high standards for tutor selection, training, direct service, and evaluation as an integral part of their overall tutoring program.
“This is a great step forward for our tutoring program and showcases the high level of quality our student tutors are able to offer students at ETBU,” ETBU Director of Academic Success Dr. Bryan Mead said. “A lot of work went into this process, particularly from Jimmy Walker and Josh Broussard, who did a lot of data gathering, curriculum designing, and tutor training to see the process through. I am excited to see ETBU join this prestigious organization and watch our tutors continue to provide top-tier support to our students.”