Craig Olson has tutored five students over his dozen or so years at Cluster Tutoring. But his technical expertise in keeping the program’s computers humming for student use is just as valuable as his work in academics. Craig is retired now, but he spent his last 12 years of employment as director of telecommunications for… Read More

Erin Agboola likes working with students of all ages, so it’s no surprise that she enjoys helping students do tasks they didn’t think they could do before. In her role as program coordinator of Project Next Step, Cluster Tutoring program for high school students, she helps those students decide what steps to take after high… Read More

Have you noticed the small, freestanding wooden boxes in people’s front yards filled with books — including at least eight in Oak Park alone? They’re part of the Little Free Library system, and it has become a worldwide phenomenon. The Little Free Library movement started in 2009 in Hudson, Wis., when a man named Todd… Read More

Austin residents 16 and older have more neighborhood opportunities to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Appointments are available for those 16 and older to get inoculated with the Pfizer vaccine at Loretto Hospital. Those signing up for the first shot will get an automatic appointment for a second shot three weeks later. There is no date… Read More

Cluster is looking for 24 students, tutors, and parents to help us make donuts at the Oak Park Farmers’ Market on Saturday, Aug. 12. The program can make $1,000 for one day of work. We are looking for folks to work one of three shifts. The first shifts start at 4 a.m., and the last… Read More

We couldn’t offer reading instruction in person this summer, but Cluster reading teachers helped 18 students with intensive reading training in July and August. The program had four professional teachers who gave 18 students five weeks of instruction. Students would meet online with a teacher one day via Zoom or Google Meet. On a second… Read More

This summer’s reading program at the Chicago Public Library encourages young readers to discover something amazing about the planet Earth. Readers can receive new books of their own and have a chance to win a field trip for their entire class to the Shedd Aquarium. From June 18 to September 1, kids 0-13 years old… Read More

Aisha Williams was so successful as a student at Cluster Tutoring that she earned a college scholarship and a degree from Northern Illinois University. She knew the best way to give something back was to become a tutor herself. When her daughter, Kyla, started kindergarten, Aisha enrolled her at Cluster Tutoring. After all, Cluster had… Read More

Whether you’re the tutor of a high school student, the parent of one, or a teenager yourself, you’re going to find out quickly that Beverly Singleton can offer assistance in steering high schoolers toward their next steps. Beverly is Cluster’s program specialist for Project Next Step, a new program specifically aimed at those in high… Read More

There’s no mystery about it: Young readers always can use more good books. Cluster Tutoring is the grateful recipient of about 100 books given by author Heather Ash, president of the Midwest Chapter of the Mystery Writers of America. The books, aimed at a young adult audience, are all from book publishers. Heather was on… Read More