The LSSU Learning Center, located on the basement floor of the Shouldice Library building in room 113, is open and available to all enrolled students free of charge.  There, tutors in over twenty different disciplines are available, as well as drop-in labs, supplemental instruction groups, and student success seminars.

Center Director Carolyn Rajewski gives all the credit for the smooth running of the Learning Center to its student employees.  “I have the honor of working with them,” she says.  All the tutors are students who have been recommended by their professors to assist other students.  The writing lab and math drop-in are conducted entirely by students.  Even the desk clerks and management are students.  The Learning Center truly is something we have done for ourselves.

One of the almost seventy student employees of the Center is tutor Nathan Prince.  A senior biology major, Nathan has tutored for a year and a half (including over the summer).  He tutors general and organic chemistry, as well as general biology.  Nathan has also taken part in the Student First program, which sends LSSU students out to high schools to help students develop good study skills and habits before they even reach college.  He has also been an IPass mentor, a program specifically aimed at assisting academically “at risk” students.

However, tutoring wasn’t something Nathan had any plans to do when he first came into the system.  He was recruited, brought in by one of his professors, and found that he “fell in love with it, I guess.”  Nathan enjoys the instant positive feedback he gets when he realizes he’s helped someone understand something they’d never understood before.  He’s made a difference both for the students he tutors and for himself.  “I’ve considered it,” he says about teaching.  “I realize I have the potential to teach if I wanted to.”

On top of that, Nathan says, the Learning Center is a great place to work.  “Carolyn takes care of us.”

Of course, one of the more delicate aspects of making the decision to use the resources at the Learning Center is the misperception that they are only for students who are at an academic disadvantage.  In fact, Ms. Rajewski says there are just as many A students as C students taking advantage of the Learning Center.  College is definitely not an easy thing to get through, and the only way an A student stays an A student is by availing themselves of every opportunity for help they can get their hands on.

To take advantage of what the Learning Center has to offer, simply pay them a visit at LIB 113.  The Learning Center has computer and internet access, tutorial software, reference and lending libraries, coffee, hot chocolate, the never-empty candy jar, and a friendly, helpful staff.  Students wanting to find out more about their various Learning Center options can contact director Carolyn Rajewski at 635-2294, or just stop by from 8:00 am to 9:00 pm Mondays through Thursdays, Fridays 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, and Sundays between 5:00 pm and 9:00 pm.

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