Conversations with Cynthia Levy

Today we’d like to introduce you to Cynthia Levy.

Hi Cynthia, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I began working with elementary school children over 2 decades ago when I worked as an Associate/Assistant Teacher for 22 years at Yavneh Hebrew Academy in Hancock Park. During the last few years of my time at Yavneh, I started tutoring in the evenings and on Sundays. I enjoyed doing that so much that I decided to tutor full time and began my company, Elementary School Tutor.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
My journey has not been a smooth one because I have never started a business before and I really didn’t know where to begin. I just knew that I wanted to work with children one on one because I wanted to be able to give my students as much individual attention as they needed. Getting students was hard at first but I went by word of mouth and my website and that helped a lot. But, I didn’t know how to make a website. In the end I was lucky enough to find someone to help me. I also had issues with scheduling because everybody always wanted the same time. I couldn’t accommodate everyone, but I tried to anyway because I didn’t want to say no to anyone. It took me awhile to figure out how I could be there for so many different students. It’s only now that it’s finally coming together.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I began my teaching career over two decades ago as a paraprofessional. I was lucky to work with wonderful teachers who taught me everything I know about working with children. Overtime I was promoted to a substitute/associate teacher. I left my job after 22 years because I really wanted to work with children one on one. I went through training at the National Tutoring Association where I became a certified professional tutor. I now work with children from K-5 on their academics, organizational skills, and study skills. I am most proud of my students because they were not afraid to ask for help and are making improvement all the time. I have traveled extensively and what sets me apart from others is that you can find all of my travel videos on my website, elementaryschooltutor.com

Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
The biggest risk I have taken in my career is to leave my job after 22 years. I had actually been thinking about doing it for a few years, but kept putting it off because I already had a very good job. But, I finally realized that if I really wanted to start my own tutoring company, I was just going have to go for it. I didn’t want to be asking myself years later. “Why didn’t I do it?” I’m glad I took a risk..

Contact Info:

• Website: https://elementaryschooltutor.com

Image Credits:
Cynthia Levy