Today we’d like to introduce you to Sam Barnes.
Sam, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
My parents would say that my career in business began when I was a teen, ruthlessly playing Monopoly at the dining room table. Though my path diverged to Engineering and a stalled dream of touring with my rock band, I ended up returning to business for good. With great fortune, my first full-time job was in the Ed-Tech industry where I experienced different ways and modalities for students to learn. This hooked me and I came to realize that working in education provided something more than just a paycheck – it provided a purpose.
The most rewarding roles I had were in product innovation. Early in my career, I was part of a team to launch tuition-free online high schools in several states. Later, we developed innovative Career and Technical Education programs that resulted in certifications for high school students. More recently, I helped a Texas-based publisher launch their services digitally. While running the nuts and bolts of a business can be fascinating, developing a new product is exciting because it’s so tangible.
A number of years ago, I started kicking around the idea of breaking the traditional tutoring model. The usual model teaches students specific academic topics for the next exam, but it fails to have any kind of long-term focus. I began to study the deficits and challenges that many students face and devise a framework for solving them holistically. When the concept became baked, I made a tough decision to part from a promising EdTech start-up and pursue a venture on my own. That’s how I founded Star Tutoring Centers.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I have always viewed myself as a ‘corporate guy’ because of the safety and security that working for a big company can provide. My moves have always been optimized and I am risk-averse. I find it daunting to operate without a safety net. In my downtime, my mind races with “what-if” scenarios which can be exhausting. These are the types of feelings that can stymie good ideas from reaching fruition and they must be overcome. I am fortunate to have a supportive spouse who reassures me and provides me with the confidence to work hard and remain resilient. (Thanks Chloe!)
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Star Tutoring Centers story. Tell us more about it.
Star Tutoring Centers is a novel tutoring concept to the Dallas area. Our after-school model focuses on building Executive Functioning skills in the context of the student’s academics. Instead of the industry-standard 45/60/90-minute, private tutoring model, our Star Sessions are 2-3 hours in length so that we can work with students to get organized, prioritize and complete a substantial amount of schoolwork under the supervision of a tutor/coach. We consult with parents (and any professionals that work with the student) to identify and strengthen areas of greatest impact.
Our goal is to spark independent learners who become successful students at our Center and then transfer those practices to home, to school, and to life. The focus on developing Executive Functioning skills is particularly important as students transition from Middle to High School and High School to college. During these transition points, students are often expected to simply know how to operate in a new environment. We find that many students are not actually taught these skills. Perhaps parents think the school is teaching it, and the school assumes that parents are teaching it; meanwhile, no one has actually taught it to the student.
Executive Functioning Skills are the bedrock of academic success as children grow. What are these skills? Broadly speaking, Executive Functioning is responsible for being able to start tasks, stay focused, and complete them. This includes focus/attention, organization, prioritization, and regulating one’s emotions. Our 2-3 hour format allows students to practice these skills, and develop a consistent and sustainable work rhythm while studying for exams and completing a lot of their work.
We encourage families to start with us early in the semester so that we can spend more time on building binders, reviewing syllabi, developing study skills, and plotting out long-term assignments and goals. This way, we can help students reach their full potential when the academics pick up later in the semester.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
In my experience, there is random luck and luck that you create. Random luck is great, but it’s just random. When I was a teen, I won a guitar in an online contest. I also won an Xbox at a work Christmas party. Random luck is great, but it’s just random – you never know when it might hit. We can also create luck by positioning ourselves for luck.
Early in my career, I got “lucky” when a Senior VP asked me (an entry-level analyst) to assist on a project. This experience accelerated my trajectory and forever changed my path. But, for this to occur, I first positioned myself for luck. I literally sought out working at a cubicle that was in a visible, high-traffic area near the boss’ office. (As you can maybe guess, most people didn’t want this desk.) Next, I prepared myself by studying technical skills and enrolling in a night-school MBA program.
Having luck happen is awesome, but you also need to take advantage of those lucky situations. Winning the guitar spurred a lifelong passion as a musician because I took advantage of that lucky situation. (Alternatively, the guitar could have collected dust in my closet.) And, that project that I was luckily selected for served as a catalyst for my career advancement because I was ready to rise to the occasion.
Pricing:
- Star Sessions for Middle School (~2 hours) – $90
- Star Sessions for High School (~3 hours) – $110
Contact Info:
- Address: 9665 N Central Expressway, #135, Dallas, TX 75231
- Website: www.StarTutoringCenters.com
- Phone: (214) 444-3431
- Email: info@StarTutoringCenters.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/startutoringcenters
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/startutoringcen
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/star-tutoring-centers-dallas
- Other: https://g.page/startutoringcenters
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