SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union has generously awarded $15,000 to support Chapman University’s new Community Math Learning Program. Embedded within the Attallah College of Educational Studies’ Teacher Education program, the Chapman Community Math Learning Center, which integrates teacher education training and community math enrichment, was launched in Spring 2021.

Cathery Yeh, Ph.D., the faculty director of the Community Math Learning Program, modeled the math tutoring program after Attallah College’s Kathleen Muth Literacy Center, which has served Orange County youth for more than 40 years. The Community Math Program gives Chapman students opportunities to practice research-based math instructional routines while providing free mathematics support and enrichment for students in the community.

Due to COVID restrictions, the Community Math Learning Program began with a virtual math tutoring program in spring 2021 and will continue virtually this fall. The center is scheduled to transition to in person tutoring and expand its programming to new Orange County K-8th grade students in spring 2022.

To enable virtual math tutoring, Dr. Yeh and her colleagues and students created a Virtual Math Classroom, a one-stop virtual learning environment that includes math resources and a Math Task Bank with 30 different types of math tests and tasks, from pre-K through 12th grade. The virtual classroom integrates a suite of online tools, including Zoom, Google Classroom, and Nearpod, to help families and students access resources, with no need to buy a separate textbook or service. Dr. Yeh said the virtual learning tools also give Chapman students an opportunity to practice using digital educational tools and prepare for their future classrooms.

Families and educators are encouraged to make of a copy of the Virtual Math Classroom, as well as view the free, online Chapman U Math at Play Video Series created by Dr. Yeh and her Teacher Education students.

“SchoolsFirst FCU is proud to support innovative, equitable, and inclusive educational programs to help foster the minds of Orange County youth,” said Bill Cheney, SchoolsFirst FCU President and CEO. “Our sponsorship of Chapman’s Community Math Program promotes math literacy among our youngest citizens and provides Chapman students opportunities to practice new research-based instructional strategies all to help build a stronger, more vibrant community.”

Visit the Community Math Learning Program website to learn more about the center and Dr. Cathery Yeh’s research.

 

The Community Math Learning Program is made possible by the generous support of the SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union in Fall 2021 and the Klein Family Foundation in Spring 2022.