What started as a way for Colorado College students to help Bristol Elementary School students with homework has blossomed into much more.
From allowing CC students the opportunity to connect with the Colorado Springs community, to enhancing the education of elementary school students, the Early Scholars Tutoring club is exceeding its mission.
Last year, Kate Lamkin ’24 and Emmie Weprin ’24 noticed that the Early Scholars Tutoring club had lost its leadership due to COVID restrictions, and the Collaborative for Community Engagement, which sponsors the club, was looking for leaders to take over. Lamkin and Weprin, who were both involved in the CCE, decided to step up.
Once a week, members of Early Scholars go to Bristol Elementary School to tutor the elementary school students and encourage them.
“We go to Bristol Elementary early in the morning on Wednesdays, before anything else at Colorado College starts, making it an incredible way to start the day, and there are never any conflicts. The community that we built is quite incredible,” says Weprin. “Everyone is coming, tired, though we work as a team to get energized and learn. The kids then start their days off already thinking and energized, but the same is true for us.”
Prior to the Early Scholars arriving, the principal or teacher will pull aside students who they believe may benefit from extra help or individualized attention. The teacher will assign students vocabulary words, worksheets, or books, depending on what the students need help with, and then the CC students will go through the assignments with the children, which allows them an opportunity to learn one-on-one and ask questions they may not feel comfortable asking in front of the entire class.
As a club, Early Scholars Tutoring hopes to provide CC students an opportunity to connect with younger students, further their interests in education, and connect with the greater Colorado Springs community.
Lamkin, an environmental science major and urban studies minor, joined Early Scholars because she wanted to combine her passion for education with her desire to connect to the greater Colorado Springs community, a desire that was inspired by her position as a Community Engaged Scholar.
Weprin became involved with the CCE at the end of her first year at CC, though she was still unsure where she wanted to focus her engagement. When Lamkin told her about Early Scholars, its concept, and how it faded out during COVID, she knew it was an opportunity she couldn’t pass up.
“Early Scholars and the CCE have been the perfect opportunity to continue working with kids while I’m at CC,” says Weprin, who is a history major and education minor.
The CCE helps the club communicate with the elementary school’s principal and volunteer coordinators, as well as provides CC students transportation to the school, and more.
“The role of Early Scholars fills a clear need in both our campus community and in the Springs community, something that both the CCE and Kate and I noticed,” says Weprin, who has been working with children in educational settings for as long as she can remember. Weprin’s mom is a teacher, and Weprin has volunteered at local schools and worked at a summer camp for several years.
Lamkin says that it’s very important for CC students to continue to remember their positionality in Colorado Springs.
“I find that I learn a lot about the community, even just in the hour that I spend there, whether it be through the kids, teachers, or staff. It's also a great opportunity for students to get one-on-one attention when they might not normally, while also learning about Colorado College and building a connection with us,” says Lamkin.
All CC students are eligible to join the club at any point in the year. Students don’t need to be education majors or minors or have any experience with tutoring.
Interested students should contact Kate Lamkin at k_lamkin@coloradocollege.edu.