Sophomore Launches Free Tutoring Service For Kids In Hillsborough

HILLSBOROUGH, NJ — When virtual schooling returned in the fall, Hillsborough High School Sophomore Diya Shah was "nervous about not getting a full education." She didn't want to get behind and knew younger students would feel the same.

She jumped into action and came up with a plan to offer a free service for homework help to students in grades 1 to 5. It would not only help the youngsters with their studies but also give them some socialization.

"I knew how stressful this whole virtual thing was on parents already," said Shah. "I asked on Facebook if any parents were interested in the homework help and I woke up the next morning to 50 responses. I saw how eager parents were to do this."

Shah began by dedicating 30 minutes per kid. Throughout the school year, she had anywhere between five and 10 kids a week.

"I would tutor two kids a day and work one-on-one with students because I know they didn't get that in the classroom. I worked with all types of kids including ones with learning disabilities or other learning educational challenges. I helped to make sure they focus," said Shah.

Volunteering while also doing her own schoolwork may seem daunting but Shah embraced it.

"I found I needed the break from my own schoolwork," said Shah. "I was happy to make the sacrifice for other kids because I knew how hard it is for them."

Since launching her free service, she has put in more than 250 volunteer hours herself and recruited about six high school volunteers to help as well.

Hillsborough parent Stacey Womack said her daughters benefited greatly from Shah's efforts.

"My daughters, 3rd and 5th grade, would not have had so much success this school year without Diya. Her ability to relate to kids and reinforce the topics taught in school enabled my daughters to grasp concepts that they were struggling with in class. She is mature beyond her years and a wonderful role model as well. Diya is enthusiastic, reliable, and professional. I say it often — we hit the jackpot the day we found her!" said Womack.

Shah is really hoping to continue spreading the word and help as many kids as possible, who were otherwise struggling as a result of the shift in our school systems.

Shah will once again offer the homework help service for the upcoming school year and is also open to helping students in neighboring towns. Anyone interested can email her at shahdiya16@gmail.com.

Have a news tip? Email alexis.tarrazi@patch.com.

Get Patch breaking news alerts sent right to your phone with our new app. Download here. Don't miss local and statewide announcements. Sign up for Patch alerts and daily newsletters