Jacksonville State University
Director Instructional
Services Unit
Instructor, Educational Resources
Supervisor Multimedia Instructional
Laboratories
Technology
Coordinator College of Education & Professional Studies
256-782-8322
“Founding a non-profit tutoring organization is important, especially when there is a strong need to bring together professionals to establish a member driven exchange of ideas, skills, and successes to help the learner. This association was founded on the ideal that through analogous experience sharing that tutors can improve their ability to create an independent, lifelong learner."
Mr. Mike Zenanko explains himself as really just a professional student. He finds new learning situations, and he enjoys the experience of learning. Since he had to support his educational pursuits, he became a public school teacher.
For eleven and a half years Mr. Zenanko taught in middle and high schools. He is certified to teach in four states —math and science. He has taught physics, chemistry, biology, Earth science, physical science, trigonometry, consumer math, economics, and ecology to secondary students. Four of the eleven years
He taught at a private school. When my wife took a position at Jacksonville State University, He took a job teaching an LD class at a local high school.
Mr. Zenanko left mid-year to take the position of coordinator of the Teaching/Learning Center at JSU. The Center is the site of the Level II clinical experiencefor pre-service education students, a tutoring program. Tutoring he accepted assomething new for me to learn. Mr. Zenanko tried to research tutoring. He found limited information and no organization of professionals to turn to for guidance. He started an organization the “National Organization of Tutoring and Mentoring.” There was another group in East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania that started a similar organization with a different name. When he attended their conference, he joined that group. Eventually Mr. Zenanko merged his organization with theirs. He enjoyed my association with others involved in tutoring. He served the association as newsletter editor, webmaster, and head of the publications committee.
Five years have passed since his involvement with a nationwide tutorial association, once again he is associating with people trying to form anotherorganization for people involved in the tutoring profession. He hopes his experiences over the years can contribute to the ATP and help it to fill the void of an independent organization of professionals in the field of tutoring.
Through my 14 years as Coordinator of a tutoring program, He knows that tutoring is an effective way to help others learn. He has been able to watch students have success with their own students. He feels like he can pass on his learning in the field of tutoring successfully. Mr. Zenanko hopes you will join the ATP and help it become a strong supportive environment for tutors.
