TUTOR SPOTLIGHT: Bill Higgins

Avon Lake resident Bill Higgins is popular at Seeds West. As the “Cookie Ambassador” he brings sweet treats with him all three days a week that he volunteers as a tutor. Bill attends the afternoon session, so the cookies provide a much-needed sugar boost to students and tutors alike. They go fast. 

But Bill brings more than treats to Seeds – he brings heart, humor and a deep dedication to helping others. 

A DESIRE TO HELP OTHERS

In some ways, being the Cookie Ambassador is a small extension of his former career.  For 40 years, Bill worked in the Mercy Healthcare system’s food division. In that time, he met a lot of people from all walks of life. 

”I saw how much they struggled to get by when they couldn’t read,” he said. “So I’ve always had a real desire to help people to learn how.” 

Bill was helping others do just that at the local library – until the program was discontinued. But Bill – an avid reader himself – wasn’t done. The reference librarian told him about Seeds and the rest is history. 

LIFELONG LEARNING

Although many tutors work with different students each day, Bill has developed a strong partnership with Carol. When they started together, she was working on language arts. Eventually Carol needed to work on math, something Bill did not want to do. 

“I told Chris (then Site Coordinator) no math, no math. But he showed me it was a pretty basic level,” he said. 

To brush up on his own skills and prepare to help Carol, Bill checked out a GED prep book from the library and gave the sample questions a try. 

“I was stunned that I couldn’t answer them! Algebra was a long time ago!” he said. That’s a common statement from prospective tutors “I don’t remember how”, “It was too long ago” – But volunteers at Seeds only tutor the subjects and levels within their comfort zone. 

When Bill realized he couldn’t answer the advanced math questions on his own, he could have stuck with tutoring language arts. But he didn’t want to let Carol down.

So Bill did something unexpected. He hired a math tutor for himself! Although everything he needed was right there in the classroom, he wanted to boost his confidence with the materials and show our students that it’s ok to need more practice. 

Math is now his favorite and he makes use of the hands-on tools and physical manipulatives to make the subject come alive. 

TOOLS, TIPS, AND TEAMWORK.

Bill credits much of his success as a tutor to the tools and support available at Seeds. 

“The packets at Seeds are really, really good for working with your students. There are so many teaching tips built right into the lessons.” Tutors don’t need to have all of the answers. In fact, students benefit most from tutors who are willing to learn alongside them.

“The staff is amazing,” Bill said. “And you’ve got the best resource right here,” he added, holding up his phone.  

Once, when a student struggled to understand a word in a passage – barge– a quick Google image search on Bill’s phone clarified everything, and the tutoring session continued. 

If having his own tutor wasn’t enough, Bill regularly attends the professional development workshops offered to tutors at Seed, knowing it will help him better serve the students.

“I’m really excited about the sessions this summer. I signed up for all of them,” he said. “I’m particularly excited to attend the one at Seeds East so I can see what that classroom is like.”

EVERYONE HAS SOMETHING TO OFFER 

Bill’s regular student Carol is a Student Ambassador at Seeds. As the title suggests, she shares her story with the community, encouraging others to pursue their education. She also speaks to new tutors at training sessions.

“She talks about being an ambassador all the time. She realy loves it,” Bill said, noting he’s seen a real change in her confidence as a result. 

When Seeds launched a similar ambassador program for tutors, Bill was an obvious choice — He’d already been an unofficial mentor, long before the program was formalized.

In addition to helping staff with tasks like preparations on graduation photo day, he spoke to a Day of Service group from KeyBank, and – like Carol – he is a regular speaker at Tutor Training sessions. 

“Speaking to new tutors is a lot of fun,” he said. “I think it really helps new people to get answers to questions from someone who is already volunteering.”

Bill is quick to remind new volunteers that tutoring doesn’t require a teaching degree, or hiring your own tutor – just a willingness to help. 

“I was intimidated when I was in this very training session you are in now. There were retired educators in the room and I doubted myself,” he admits. “But I just tried it. And that’s what I tell other people now – just try it. Everyone has something to offer as a tutor.“

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FAST FACTS ABOUT BILL

• He goes to the library every night to read the newspaper. 
• Although retired now, he still goes to Mercy to volunteer one day a week in the gift shop. 
• Although Seeds is not an ESL program, English is not the first language for many students. “I was really impressed when I saw two students creating their own English dictionary, using a dictionary in their language. I give them so much credit because English is made up of adaptations from so many other languages, it’s not easy to learn.”

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BECOME A TUTOR LIKE BILL

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