Lemerand Center of Excellence provides free tutoring, enrichment to elementary students

For most young kids, attending college is a distant dream, but for some Volusia County elementary students, learning on a college campus is a daily occurrence.

Food Brings Hope, Daytona State College and Volusia County Schools cut the ribbon on the Lemerand Center of Excellence Nov. 6. The new after-school enrichment program started this academic year.

Up to 70 students and their families from Palm Terrace and Turie T. Small elementary schools — two of Volusia’s designated Title 1 schools — are eligible to participate.

“For them to go to school, and then for them to learn, but then after school, they get extra help at a college, that’s rare,” said Shameil Porter, mom to Walter, a fifth-grader at Palm Terrace Elementary. “For him to have the opportunity, I think that’s amazing. … For my son to be able to get tutoring at Daytona State College, that’s wonderful. I’m glad. I was excited. Once I found out about it, I was like: ‘definitely.’”

According to the district, this program aims to help students achieve academic success through innovative tutoring and educational enrichment opportunities in English Language Arts, math and coding.

“It's really fun,” said participating student Zander Bowen. “They make cool games for it. The games are like teamwork games and you'll have to always work together to try to figure it out, and they’re just fun, like we're supposed to work together.”

The Lemerand Center also encourages students to reach their full potential — educationally, socially and economically.

“What excites me the most is the opportunity that the kids get,” said parent Calvin Wilson. “So they can flourish and possibly become the most successful that they can be.”

Wilson’s son, King, said he has already learned lots at the Lemerand Center, and not only academically.

“It is helping us be a better person,” King said.

Philanthropist L. Gale Lemerand contributed $500,000 to fund the program.

“You find very, very few people donate to elementary students as part of public education because they figure they’re being taxed and that’s enough, and really, it’s not enough, and so, I’m so happy to be involved with this program,” he said. “I’m very honored to be here. I think the program is wonderful.”

This project was spearheaded by Food Brings Hope Founder and Chair Forough Hosseini, but its execution wouldn’t be possible without support from across the community.

“I was ecstatic,” Hosseini said about learning of Lemerand’s grant. “I literally thought that I can’t just take the money and add it to everything else that we do. That money deserves its own program that’s going to be able to make a huge difference to our very, very special Falcons. … It needs to be a program that would make (Lemerand) proud, that would leave a legacy that (he deserves). And this is just the beginning.”

The program takes place at the Daytona State College campus. The college provides classroom space, supplemental instruction, snacks and dinner for kids daily.

Food Brings Hope will help provide funding for the program and will have staff on site to assist with program execution.

Volusia County Schools will transport students from their respective schools to Daytona State College. The district will also help develop and structure the program curriculum.

“I want to thank every adult in this room: parents, community members, everyone,” said Volusia County School Board Chair Jamie Haynes at the ceremony. “You are making a true difference in the lives of these children. You’re helping to lay a strong foundation for every one of them so that they can learn and grow because ultimately, what we want is, we want them to grow up and come back and be productive citizens. That’s what we want. And you’re making that happen tonight.”

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Volusia students receive tutoring, enrichment at DSC with new program