Introducing Tutor Coordinator Mary Grace Aguinaldo

We are excited to welcome Mary Grace Aguinaldo as our new Tutor Coordinator for CLASP. Our former coordinator Raydie Buckley recently retired and we are very grateful for Raydie’s years of dedicated service.

Grace was born in the Philippines, raised in Bahrain and completed her higher education in Canada. How international! She holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology from the University of Alberta in Canada. Most recently she was a Math and Language Arts tutor so she understands first-hand the positive impact that after-school programs can have in enhancing the life of young children. She also has experienced personally the challenges our tutors can have while tutoring.

Grace has four years of experience as a Faith Formation Coordinator for teens, working in a community setting, and was involved in recruiting, mentoring and managing volunteers. Additionally, in a previous role as a Child Development Specialist, she provided support for children, modeling strategies that helped them practice social skills and build lasting relationships. Grace and her husband, Ian, together with their five young children currently reside in Upland.

We are delighted Grace has joined our small mighty team at CLASP. We need over 100 volunteer tutors during the year to establish one-to-one relationships with elementary school students, and to ensure we have enough substitutes when tutors are on break, vacation or absent. About 60% of the volunteers are adult members of the community and 40% are college and high school student volunteers.

CLASP recently expanded its Tutor Coordinator role to meet the demand of recruiting and retaining enough volunteers. Grace will be broadly responsible for tutor recruitment and helping to retain those who are already helping. This will include communicating with and meeting community members through multiple channels. Besides managing tutor placement, she will and compile timely and frequent newsletters with tips, advice and resources. If you have connections with groups, individuals, or channels that would be helpful in recruiting volunteers, please do not hesitate to contact Grace at: tutorcoordinator@clasp4kids.org