Tutor Refugee Students this Spring!

Save to Favorites

Opportunities: We are currently seeking in-person and virtual volunteer tutors to work one-on-one with our 100 refugee students in the West Ridge community!

General Position Description: Delivers cutting-edge High Impact Tutoring ("HIT") to one-hundred formerly pre-literate SLIFE (Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education) refugee students in grades K through 12 from Myanmar, Afghanistan, Syria, and Bhutan. The goal is to ensure that educational gaps are filled and that the students catch up to grade level. This is an unpaid volunteer position.

Dates & Times: Our Spring program will run from January 13th until June 11th, 2025.

Time slots and Requirements:

In-person volunteers must sign up for at least two 2-hour shifts per week (minimum 4 hours per week commitment). The shifts available are Monday-Friday from 4:30-6:30 p.m CT and 7:00-9:00 p.m CT.

Virtual tutors must tutor for one hour a day Mon-Fri, a total of five hours of tutoring/ week. Virtual tutoring time slots are 4:30-5:30 p.m, 5:30-6:30 p.m, 7:00-8:00 p.m, or 8:00-9:00 p.m CT.

Philosophy: We are a community, and we invest in each other every day. We want our volunteers to have robust experiences at FORA and to help them on their journey as they search for and discover their life calling. We elevate people who show talent and dedication, regardless of age or resume.

Location: The site of FORA’s empowerment center, 6435 N. California Ave, Chicago, IL, 60645. This is in the West Ridge neighborhood, known as one of the most diverse neighborhoods in the United States, with 43% of the population foreign-born, with 40 different languages spoken, and with more than 60% speaking a language other than English as their home language. It is a wonderful place to live or just to spend a summer.

Qualifications: As you will be teaching math and reading in English to preliterate students, you need to be able to fluently read in English. If you can read well in English, you have the educational qualifications for this job. We value patience, kindness, wellness, intercultural connection, a passion for learning and a determined resilience... and modeling these values for others. All tutors must undergo a formal background check to work with the children.

Recommendations and Awards: If you meet the necessary criteria, FORA will nominate you for a prestigious Presidential Volunteer Service Award. We also endeavor to truly get to know each of our volunteers so that upon completion of the program, we can write robust letters of recommendation for future jobs and grad school applications.

Application process and deadlines: Please apply through our online portal at https://www.refugeefora.org/volunteertutorapplication

Questions: For questions regarding this opportunity, please email FORA's Chief Outreach Officer Giulianna Larson (giuliannal@refugeefora.org)