Enjoying academic success as a student at a top-notch college preparatory school can be challenging and sometimes frustrating. At Tallulah Falls School, when students find themselves having difficulty keeping up with the material being presented in class, they can get help from their friends through the Peer Tutor program.

The Peer Tutor program at Tallulah Falls School began more than 20 years ago, when members of the school's chapter of the National Honor Society thought it would be worthwhile to begin tutoring their fellow students.

"Today’s Peer Tutors are at the very top of their class academically," said

Bill Coldren, a mathematics instructor at Tallulah Falls School who directs the Peer Tutor program. "What is especially gratifying is that all of the Peer Tutors are volunteers, giving freely of their time to help their classmates," he added.

Teenagers have their own unique way of communicating with each other. By translating the most complex of concepts into "teen speak" for their friends, Peer Tutors help their friends to better understand class content.

"I remind Peer Tutors that they are not to do another student's homework. They have the greater challenge of helping that student understand the material so that he or she can do his or her own homework," Coldren said.

Typically Peer Tutors meet with students needing help at the end of the regular school day during the tutorial period. One Peer Tutor can work with one or multiple students. While primarily a high school program, a few middle school students participate.

Often a teacher in a particular subject area will request a Peer Tutor, who the teacher then pairs with a student or students needing assistance. This is especially helpful during the tutorial period, freeing up the teacher to work with the entire group.

Peer Tutors do not limit their efforts to the afternoon tutorial time. They help other students after tutorial, during evening study time, during the Thursday evening study café, on road trips to sporting and recreational events, and in the morning before school begins.

Is the Peer Tutor program beneficial to students? "For the peer tutors, their role reinforces academic content, since they have to know the material well enough to explain it to their peers. The program also instills in these students a sense of pride and accomplishment in helping others," Coldren said.

"Students being tutored have friends as additional academic resources. They feel comfortable asking their friends questions that they might not feel comfortable asking in other settings. The goal of this interaction is academic improvement," Coldren added.

"At Tallulah Falls School we don’t just talk about service, we act," said Joelisa Hilario, a Tallulah Falls School senior. "Assisting other students through the Peer Tutor program is very fulfilling personally, because I firmly believe that by helping others we help ourselves," she added.