Massachusetts: DESE-Sponsored Tutoring

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) is laying the groundwork to offer FREE, high-dosage early literacy tutoring for grades K–3, with priority for 1st grade, pending final state budget approval. This initiative will help accelerate student learning and close opportunity gaps through student-centered, evidence-based tutoring delivered in flexible models to meet district needs.

Visit DESE’s Early Literacy High Dosage Tutoring Programs website for more info and to express interest today!

OnYourMark delivers tutoring services through a robust network of over 200 part-time, independent contracted tutors and substitutes, supported by 24 full-time staff members. Our tutors include retired and part-time educators, college students, participants in teacher preparation programs, and experienced gig tutors who are passionate about working with children and exploring careers in education.

Top-Notch Sourcing

We carefully select our tutors using a rigorous hiring and onboarding process that requires them to demonstrate their ability to effectively deliver early literacy instruction and engage students in a virtual learning environment.

Sourcing strategies include:

Targeted outreach to virtual part-time educators
Partnerships with colleges and schools of education
Collaboration with mission-aligned nonprofits that help young people explore meaningful career paths

Program Execution

To ensure smooth implementation, we pair every school with a dedicated Partner Success Manager (PSM) from OnYourMark. The PSM serves as the main point of contact, collaborating closely with a designated school-based liaison to coordinate schedules, review student data, resolve tutor-related issues, and provide responsive support throughout the program.

Coordination With Schools

For effective coordination, schools and districts should identify a staff member who can act as the internal liaison. This person will work with the PSM to align logistics, monitor progress, and communicate any evolving needs, ensuring a seamless integration of tutoring into the school day.

Benchmark Assessments

At OnYourMark, we use DIBELS® assessments 3 times per year (beginning, middle, and end) to monitor each student’s reading progress. These benchmarks sync seamlessly with your school’s data systems, ensuring consistent measurement across all platforms.

Ongoing Progress Monitoring

Between benchmarks, we conduct short, weekly check-ins aligned with DIBELS measures. These quick formative assessments:

Give tutors real-time insight into student performance
Allow for immediate instructional adjustments
Keep classroom teachers informed with up-to-date progress reports

Responsive, Data-Driven Instruction

Our responsive approach means that our tutors don’t just follow a set curriculum. Instead, they adapt to each student’s needs.

When a student demonstrates skill mastery, we immediately introduce new challenges to accelerate growth.
If a student needs more support, we reinforce key concepts.
Every lesson adjusts to the learner's pace while keeping them on the path to foundational skill mastery.

This data-driven approach ensures every minute of tutoring delivers maximum impact.

How It Works:

Automatically analyzes student data every 2 weeks
Generates targeted lessons for 2 priority skills
Provides 5 daily activities per skill

Key Benefit:

Dynamic personalization based on real-time progress monitoring.

How It Works:

Teaches foundational skills through explicit, sequenced lessons
Adapts for core instruction or intervention
Includes biweekly progress checks

Key Benefit:

Builds automaticity through carefully structured repetition.

Targeted Tutor Training

We apply teacher-developed best practices to make sure every tutor excels.

Comprehensive Preparation

22+ hours of initial training in:

Science of Reading fundamentals
Equitable literacy instruction
Virtual engagement strategies
Program-specific delivery (mCLASS and UFLI)

Ongoing Professional Development

Weekly 60-minute PD sessions to refine:

Data-driven instruction
Equity practices
Skill mastery

Tiered Coaching Model

New tutors: Weekly 1:1 sessions with expert literacy coaches
Experienced tutors: Biweekly peer group workshops
All tutors develop skills through observed lessons with real-time actionable feedback

Culturally Responsive Instruction

Supporting Diverse Learners

OnYourMark weaves identity-affirming practices into every tutoring session.

Because meaningful relationships are at the core of our work, our tutors take pride in getting to know each student’s unique strengths, experiences, and cultural background.

Our tutors actively value linguistic diversity, incorporating home languages when appropriate and creating inclusive virtual spaces where every learner thrives. We enhance core materials with diverse texts to make sure that students encounter stories that both reflect and validate their identities while mastering foundational reading skills.

Relationship Driven

OnYourMark distinguishes itself from other virtual tutoring solutions by emphasizing the importance of relationships at all levels of its organization. To that end, every school district engagement uses a partnership model, starting with a dedicated Partner Success Manager and continuing through to the student-tutor partnership. From the first planning meeting with leadership to ongoing check-ins with teachers, the OnYourMark team centers its work on relationships, all in service of forming the most important relationships of all, those with students.

Tutor-to-Student

Tutors invest time to understand each student personally, tapping into their motivations. Tutors are trained to assess and address each student’s unique needs, strengths, and areas for improvement. Students consistently work with the same tutor, fostering trust and building a strong rapport. Tutors monitor students’ progress and adjust lessons as needed to help students move toward reading proficiency.

Tutor-to-Tutor Mentor

Tutors are paired with experienced early literacy coaches who provide regular feedback, coaching, and support, ensuring the ongoing implementation of evidence-based instructional strategies. Mentors and tutors collaborate to share best practices and resources, enhancing the overall tutoring experience.

Teacher-to-Tutor

Partner Success Managers collaborate closely with classroom teachers to align their support with the school’s curriculum and learning outcomes. OnYourMark Partner Success Managers keep teachers informed about students’ progress, strengths, and areas for improvement. Frequent communication ensures that teachers are aware of what students are learning and how they are progressing.

OnYourMark-to-Teacher

Our Partner Success Team is dedicated to supporting literacy instruction for classroom teachers. In addition to regular meetings with campus coordinators and literacy instructors, OnYourMark regularly updates its resource web page with classroom resources teachers can implement in their classrooms the next day, updates blogs with best practices, and sends out a monthly newsletter to OnYourMark partner schools.

OnYourMark-to-Schools/Districts

OnYourMark tutors build strong relationships with schools and districts, collaborating closely to identify specific needs and customize tutoring programs to effectively meet the needs identified.

OnYourMark provides tutoring services across all tiers of intervention, with a primary focus on Tier 2 and Tier 3 students.

OnYourMark works closely with school and district personnel to understand their specific needs and tailor tutoring programs accordingly.

Tutors continuously assess student progress to ensure appropriate growth and regularly share detailed reports with classroom teachers to maintain consistency in student support.

OnYourMark-to-Caregivers

OnYourMark actively supports caregiver engagement by equipping schools to share clear and timely information with their communities, including student progress updates and survey insights, to foster transparency and trust.

During benchmark periods, caregivers receive personalized “Home Connect” reports that highlight their child’s literacy goals and suggest targeted at-home activities to reinforce learning. All materials, including program overviews and reports, are provided in multiple languages to ensure the entire school community can stay informed and involved.

Our 3-Phase Partnership Launch

OnYourMark ensures smooth program starts through a coordinated implementation process that:

1. Aligns Teams

Clarifies roles for tutors, teachers, and administrators
Coordinates schedules and tech setups in advance

2. Prepares for Instruction

Completes all assessments and data sharing
Trains tutors on school-specific needs

3. Launches Successfully

Begins tutoring with all systems operational
Establishes communication protocols

This phased approach minimizes disruptions while maximizing early program success for both students and educators.

Implementation Focus Areas

These components form the foundation of our successful school launches—see how this worked at YES Prep Public Schools in Houston, Texas, in our webinar recap.

Technical Preparation

Establishing digital infrastructure and tools for seamless delivery

Schedule Integration

Aligning tutoring with school day routines and priorities

Launch Support

Providing training and guidance to ensure engagement

Next Steps for Massachusetts Schools

To partner with OnYourMark for DESE-sponsored tutoring, follow these 3 simple steps:

1. Submit Your Interest Form

Complete the Early Literacy Tutoring Interest Form by June 30.

2. Rank Your Preference

Select OnYourMark as your top choice with: “Four days per week, 20 min/session, during the school day, one-on-one, offered virtually (online) from a vendor-provided tutor.”

3. Confirm With DESE

After June 30, notify your DESE representative to finalize your virtual tutoring partnership.

“Partnering with OnYourMark to provide virtual early literacy tutoring has been a critical part of ensuring our students get access to resources, like private tutoring. We view it as such a high priority that we made it part of the school day to ensure our students receive one-on-one support and instruction in communities where those resources aren't readily available.”

Yasmin Bhatia Uplift Education CEO