a dream

You might remember me asking for your help on how to tutor a kid who doesn’t know their multiplication table. I’m happy to report that not only does she know her multiplication table but she’s made huge strides in several of her subjects. I’m confident that she’ll move on from the safe environment of elementary school and into the unsympathetic arms of middle school.

I’m sad to report, however, that the very tutoring center that gave her the extra push she needed to move to the next grade level is closing this month. You see, the city made budget cuts and community centers located in the middle of housing projects for low-income folks were the first items cut. That’s right, the community center is closing down; therefore, there is no more tutoring for these kids.

Which leads me to this, since coming here to Brooklyn, I’ve envisioned CCFB overseeing a tutoring program. I haven’t shared that dream with many folks and I do so here reluctantly knowing that it might never be a dream realized. But I thought that maybe if I blogged about it, you all might hold me accountable to search out the possibilities of this dream.

Here are the potential roadblocks hindering this dream:

1. CCFB owns no property. We rent out the cafeteria in a public school for our Sunday services. We have no physical space to meet in.
2. CCFB doesn’t have much money. We’re a small church and while we are seeing some numeric growth, it’s still not enough to sustain a tutoring center.
3. To make the tutoring center legit, there would be much work that would have to be done. I’m thinking insurance, rules, responsibilities, etc. In other words, a lot of work would have to go into this.
4. Finally, many of CCFB’s people don’t live in this neighborhood so they would support it from afar. They would not be able to give their physical time and energy to this dream.

A couple of these roadblocks are easy to remedy:

1. CCFB could rent a storefront near the housing projects - which, by the way, is just two blocks from where I live. There is always space to rent.
2. With the help of others, I’m up for this kind of challenge so the amount of work isn’t an issue.
3. The fourth roadblock wouldn’t be a problem either as tons of neighborhood folks want to give their time in this very rewarding way. I’m not advocating for a Christian tutoring program in which at the end of the day we all stand in a circle and pray. I just want to help the kids with their homework. I’m guessing a lot of my neighbors do as well.

So the only roadblock is money. hmm…