January Pair of the Month
Andrew Brown believes he “won the lottery” of tutoring when he was matched with 3rd grader Delilah back in 2020. Like other student-tutor pairs that year, they began their work together over Zoom, and it took time to build a rapport. Andrew remembers the turning point came when he and Delilah read the novel, “The One and Only Ivan”; to enrich the educational experience after reading the book, they decided to watch the movie version together on Zoom, eating popcorn and chatting about similarities and differences between the film and text. That summer, Andrew met Delilah and her mom in person and things just got easier from there.

According to Andrew, Delilah has always been a strong, self-motivated student. As with any student, there are challenging sessions where homework feels like a struggle or the math problems get harder and harder, and times when he can “see the gears grinding” over Zoom as Delilah works. Powering through those sessions together usually ends with Delilah doing her “happy dance” to celebrate. Andrew is always impressed by Delilah’s resilience and appreciates her joking nature. “Delilah has a great sense of humor,” says Andrew, “we can always have a good time together, even in difficult times.”
From the beginning, Andrew committed to making his and Delilah’s sessions a priority and a “safe space” in the day. “No matter what else is going on or what other stressors I might be walking away from, I make sure that our time is an enjoyable time, a space with no judgment. That makes a difference.” Consistency is also key, and Andrew credits Delilah’s mom Lisa, who has a very busy job, for being a great partner and ensuring Delilah is present and engaged for every tutoring session. He believes the strong mother-daughter relationship between Delilah and Lisa has helped make Delilah a self-aware and independent adolescent.
Andrew describes Delilah, who is now thriving in 7th grade, as “emotive, performative and a joy.” Over five years of working together and celebrating in-person touchpoints like holidays or family gatherings, Andrew says they have become extensions of one another’s lives. Though Delilah’s schedule has become busier with extracurricular activities, including cheerleading, and she has matriculated from the Tutoring Chicago program, they plan to continue tutoring together for the foreseeable future.
Andrew and Delilah truly demonstrate the Tutoring Chicago precept that strong relationships make stronger students. Their story also highlights how not just the student, but often the volunteer tutor, is changed for the better and changed for good (to quote Andrew and Delilah’s favorite “Wicked” song) through their Tutoring Chicago experience.