The Key to Proven Reading Growth? High-Impact Tutoring with Heart

How OnYourMark’s Relationship-First Approach Drives Meaningful Early Literacy Growth

Our Tutors Make the Difference

High-Quality Tutors

Highly trained literacy specialists who accelerate student progress.

Human Connection

Trusting and supportive tutor-student relationships that empower student growth and confidence.

Undeniable Literacy Growth

88% of OnYourMark students exceeded reading growth expectations in 2024-2025.

Contents

We recruit, train, and support exceptional educators because students deserve more than just literacy help. They deserve connection.

Great high-impact tutoring isn’t just about the time spent with a tutor—it’s about who is doing the tutoring. 

Keep reading for more about how OnYourMark’s robust tutor training and relationship-first approach more than doubled the number of students reaching reading benchmarks from the start to the end of their time in tutoring.

Our Tutor Difference: Rigor + Heart

"We don’t just train tutors—we coach them for continuous growth."
Jamie Thomas headshot Jamie Thomas OnYourMark Education Senior Director of Program

Mission-Alignment from Our Tutors to Our C-Suite

OnYourMark’s vision is for all children to have access to high-quality reading instruction and become confident, thriving readers. Recognizing that 3rd-grade reading proficiency is directly related to future success in school and improved life outcomes, OnYourMark strives for all children to gain the foundational skills in early literacy that support successful reading outcomes by 3rd grade. Engaging in foundational literacy skills intervention will support children to read on grade level, diminish the need for schools to remediate, and set students up for success beyond their school years.

We believe every child deserves a real connection on their journey to reading success. That’s why we choose the tutors we do—because they demonstrate a belief in our mission and a clear commitment to student achievement.

“To put it simply, our tutors aren’t here for a side hustle. They’re here for the real work. They deliver something more to each child they work with. I’m beyond proud of the work they do for our kids.” 
–Mindy Sjoblom, Founder and CEO, OnYourMark Education

OnYourMark’s rigorous selection process, coaching, and professional development ensure that our tutors are aligned with our mission and vision, who are passionate about education, and deliver outstanding service to our students.

Our Tutors By the Numbers

Our team of dedicated tutors includes former educators, college students, bilingual speakers, and lifelong learners united by one goal: building relationships that ignite confidence. That’s why our Talent team—full of subject-matter experts and battle-tested instructional coaches—carefully screens each tutor applicant. (Only 1 in 10 applicants become OnYourMark tutors!)

  • 40% of current tutors are current or former classroom teachers
  • 23% hold a current teacher certificate
  • 10% identify as bilingual and can provide targeted support for multilingual learners in an optional survey

All of those numbers amount to a talented tutoring team that believes in the power of relationships for early literacy learners.

blue, wired, over-the-ear headphones

Industry-Leading Pre-Service Training…

Before ever starting a tutoring session with students, every OnYourMark tutor completes an intensive preparation course. This pre-service ‘bootcamp’ includes a minimum of 22 hours of training in:

  • Science of Reading fundamentals, from phonemic awareness to comprehension
  • Culturally responsive instruction and strategies for multilingual learners
  • Virtual engagement techniques, like reading subtle cues through a screen

…and Continued Professional Development Set Us Apart

And because we believe in continuous improvement, OnYourMark is the industry leader in professional development for tutors. OnYourMark tutors receive: 

  • Weekly 60-Minute PD: Live workshops on data-driven instruction
  • Weekly 30-Minute 1:1 Coaching for new tutors + peer-group coaching for experienced tutors: Personalized feedback for actionable improvement

All done to ensure that every session is sharper than the last.

OnYourMark Tutor Coaching

We invest in our tutors because it's our tutors behind the meaningful literacy growth for our students.

Full-Year Coaching Commitment

Every tutor is paired with an expert coach for their entire OnYourMark journey.

Detailed Session Reviews

Tutors receive written feedback after every session to refine their approach.

Collaborative Skill-Building

A mix of 1:1 coaching and group training keeps tutors at the top of their game.

This rigorous training prepares tutors not just to teach, but to build the transformative relationships that make learning stick.

“What I love most about OnYourMark is the incredible support from the coaches and the impact of the professional development sessions. These experiences have helped me grow into a more confident and effective tutor, allowing me to better support students who are struggling with reading.

Watching these kids make progress—knowing that my efforts, combined with the guidance of my coach and this program, are making a real difference—is truly rewarding. Each day, I wake up excited to help students on their reading journey. I've also been introduced to powerful concepts like the Science of Reading, which has had a significant impact on how I approach instruction and how students learn. I'm especially proud of the progress my students have made and the achievements they've earned through this program.

I'm looking forward to continuing this journey, seeing more students grow into confident readers, and deepening my skills as a literacy tutor. My experience with OnYourMark has been nothing short of amazing, and I'm proud to be part of such a meaningful and supportive program.”
– Hadeel E., OnYourMark Tutor

Scroll to see more of what our tutors say about their work with OnYourMark: 

“The training and support that I have received as a tutor with OnYourMark has been unmatched, and the impact on the students has been evident. To see learners go from frustrated and bogged down with reading to now excited to show up in session each day, feeling proud of what they have accomplished, is incredibly rewarding. I find it very exciting to be part of an intervention making this type of impact.”

Mary Q.

OnYourMark Tutor

“Tutoring with OnYourMark has been one of those rare experiences where purpose and practice align. The clarity of the curriculum, the care in coaching, and the commitment to student growth all speak volumes about the people behind this program. I've grown not just as an educator, but as someone more aware of what it means to show up for kids—consistently, thoughtfully, and with intention. It's not flashy work, but it matters. And the way OnYourMark approaches it makes you proud to be a small part of the effort.” 

Name Withheld

OnYourMark Tutor

“I am so proud to be a part of OYM. It is an outstanding educational organization where you, as a team member, can feel you are truly changing the lives of our children for the better!”

Maryellen T.

OnYourMark Tutor

“After tutoring and teaching with other companies, OnYourMark cares about their employees and is always willing to help with any questions we have. OnYourMark does not just throw you in and never speak to you again. I really enjoy the coaching and the advancement for learning in our PD sessions."

Name Withheld

OnYourMark Tutor

“I enjoy being an OYM Tutor because when I see my students show even the slightest sign of growth, I light up from the inside out. I think seeing them happy when they progress is a proud moment, no matter how big or small it may be.”

Asha B.

OnYourMark Tutor

“I love the connection I have with my students and the chance to see them grow and improve in their literacy skills.”

Name Withheld

OnYourMark Tutor

"The best part of tutoring at OnYourMark is the ongoing support from the coaches! This helps to fully equip tutors with the necessary resources and guidance we need to strengthen the students' reading skills!"

Wanda S.

OnYourMark Tutor

Relationships That Accelerate Literacy Growth

"Our coaches are the heart and skill behind the experiences we provide to students—they translate knowledge into practice and ensure tutors are equipped to deliver high-impact literacy instruction every day, no matter their starting point. Their guidance drives meaningful growth, confidence, and support for tutors to ensure students receive consistent, high-quality instruction. Our coaching amplifies impact; it’s not just support for tutors; it’s a strategic investment in the outcomes of every child they serve. When coaches thrive, our tutors succeed, and student learning accelerates."
Christina Chester headshot Christina Chester OnYourMark Education Director of Tutor Development
“Strong relationships provide the foundation for engagement, belonging, and learning.”
– EdTrust, 2021

 

Ask any educator about their priorities when it comes to student learning, and you’ll hear the word relationship over and over again. Meaningful connections between educators and students impact everything from classroom management and student engagement to the actual information retained by students. 

Why Relationships Matter in Literacy Instruction

1) Safety for Academic Risk-Taking

Students need trusted adults to feel safe making mistakes—a critical component of early reading success (Hashim et al., 2024). 

2) Consistency Drives Attendance

A 2024 Annenberg Institute study demonstrates that key characteristics of high-impact tutoring, such as low tutor-student ratios and sessions that take place during the school day, significantly reduce absenteeism. The findings suggest that “having tutoring embedded into the school day likely positively changes students’ school experience leading to decreased absenteeism.” This is likely because students have the consistent presence of a caring adult who is invested in that student’s success. 

3) Academic Outcomes Improve

The 2018 SPARK Youth Voice Survey shows that students with strong developmental relationships, such as those with a consistent tutor, are

  • 2.3x more likely to enjoy learning, and
  • 2.5x more likely to work hard to learn in school
boy being tutored, large - web
More often than not, struggling readers are not just behind in reading. Strong reading skills support achievement in every subject. Therefore, without effective literacy interventions that support mastery of foundational reading skills, students won't become skilled readers who can comprehend what they are reading. As a result, they fall further and further behind academically and miss out on the opportunities that come from academic success.

And again, ask any educator about students who are struggling academically, and you’ll hear that it’s this relationship—the one between the struggling student and their teacher—that means the most, yet is the hardest to cultivate with students. 

It’s this ‘universal truth’ about relationships in education that drives the OnYourMark approach to high-dosage tutoring. By being intentional about developing a positive tutor-student relationship, our tutors earn their students’ trust, allowing the transformative learning to begin.

But how? How do we do this in a virtual setting?
a doodle of a rocket and stars

How We Build Tutor-Student Relationships Virtually: Our Proven Connection Techniques

Online/virtual instruction doesn’t have to be disconnected, robotic, or dry. And OnYourMark ensures that our evidence-based literacy instruction is anything but. 

Our tutor coaches train tutors in a variety of relationship-building techniques, like:

  • 2-Minute connections: Personalized check-ins (e.g., “How’s your new puppy, Jayden?”)
  • Micro-progress celebrations: “You’ve mastered 12 sight words—up from 5 last week!”
  • Re-engagement strategies: Responding to student needs in real time, like movement breaks, if attention wanes

Every OnYourMark tutoring session begins with a relationship-building activity and is designed to engage students from start to finish, maximizing learning time and fostering strong bonds between students and their tutors.

“It's not just that I get people who are good at building relationships,” says Dana Talley, former Chief Academic Officer at Lincoln Parish Schools in Ruston, Louisiana. “It's that you get people who know the expectation is that you're going to build relationships, and [OnYourMark] is going to give you activities to help do that. And that's really important. You want to hire the right person, but then you don't just turn them loose and hope it goes well. OnYourMark is very strategic about those activities to build those relationships. And it was so quick, too! I was just amazed at how quickly the kids really connected to the tutors.”
headshot_Dana Talley (2025) - cropped Dana Talley Lincoln Parish Schools Former Chief Academic Officer

It’s this focus on relationships that gets results. Students enrolled in OnYourMark’s high-impact tutoring program enjoy coming to their sessions. In fact, 76% of OYM students voluntarily attend 3+ sessions/week, because our students know that their tutors care.

Our tutors don’t just teach—they build relationships that make students eager to log in, session after session.

a blue book open with hearts coming out of the book seam

Relationship-Based Reading Instruction for Personalized Learning Plans

Strong relationships don’t just build trust. They unlock data—and get results.

OnYourMark tutors leverage connections with students to create truly individualized learning paths. Here’s how: 

Relationships Reveal the “Why” Behind the Struggles

Struggling readers often face unique barriers (e.g., language differences, undiagnosed dyslexia, low academic confidence). Our tutors are trained to:

  • Listen deeply during check-ins (“You skipped words when reading fast—let’s try ‘chunking’ sentences together!”)
  • Spot patterns (e.g., a student who hesitates on vowel teams may need targeted phonics reinforcement)
  • Adapt in real time (e.g., adjusting lesson pacing if a student is frustrated)
“My students' confidence grew when I started connecting with them and building a personal relationship. A student who was initially not willing to participate started following the rules because of the expectations I set. The lessons are so playful that the students actually enjoy them.”
smiling woman with dark hair Rani B. OnYourMark Education Tutor

Personalized Plans Start With Connection

Every OnYourMark student receives a targeted and dynamic learning plan informed by:

  • Diagnostic assessments (quantitative data from DIBELS® and other evidence-based assessments)
  • Tutor observations (qualitative insights, like “Lila learns best with kinesthetic cues—we added finger-tapping for syllable counting”)
  • Student voice (“I like stories about animals!” → tutors incorporate high-interest texts)

“At a first session with a new student, one of the first things she said to me was 'I can't read.'  After that first session, I saw that she could read, just not fluently or with confidence. As our sessions progressed and we got to know each other better, I learned where and what reading skills she needed help with. This is what we worked on during our sessions together. Over time, I saw her confidence and reading fluency improve.”
- Michele S., OnYourMark Tutor

Connect With Our Team

See how our tutors personalize learning. Schedule a demo today.

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Relationships Ignite (and Fuel) a Growth Mindset

Struggling readers often internalize failure (“I’m just bad at reading”). Our tutors:

  • Reframe challenges (“You’re not stuck—you’ve mastered 3 of 5 vowel sounds!”)
  • Co-create goals (“Let’s aim to read 10 irregular words by Friday—you pick the reward!”)
  • Celebrate micro-wins (e.g., “You read that sentence smoothly—high five!”)

“Four of my students moved up in their reading levels. This was a great success and a proud moment for these students. They were excited, and it seems they already realized they had greatly improved in their reading ability.”
- Gabriele A., OnYourMark Tutor

girl wearing phones and looking at laptop

Results: Measurable Gains, Remarkable Readers

OnYourMark Education's early literacy tutoring program delivers significant and measurable reading growth for elementary students. The data from the 2024-2025 school year demonstrates that a majority of students, including those who start the year behind, make substantial gains, with many reaching or exceeding grade-level benchmarks in literacy.

Our Impact Summary: 5 Takeaways from SY 2024-25

A majority of students exceed growth expectations.

Across the full year of tutoring, 54% of students met or exceeded their growth expectations, with a third of all students achieving above or well above average growth. For students in the spring-only program, this number was even higher at 64%.

Students are rapidly moving to grade-level proficiency.

There was a 175% increase in the number of students who were at or above benchmark from the beginning of the year to the end of the year. This translates to a 21-percentage point increase in the number of students reading at or above grade level, moving from 12% to 33%.

The program effectively supports the most at-risk readers. 

For students who started the year below or well below benchmark, 38% still met or exceeded their growth expectations. Furthermore, an impressive 80% of these students met or exceeded growth expectations in at least one individual literacy skill, showing that they are making important progress.

Students show broad development across multiple literacy skills.

The data shows that 87% of students who received a full year of tutoring grew in at least one individual skill assessment, and nearly half (47%) met or exceeded expectations in four or more different skills.

Innovative pilot programs show even greater promise.

OnYourMark is continuously innovating to find what works best for students. For example, the Magpie Blended Model pilot, which combines tutoring with personalized online instruction, saw 76% of students meet their growth targets, significantly outperforming the non-pilot group. Similarly, a pilot using UFLI curriculum also showed a greater percentage of students in the target growth range compared to the standard program.

a blue bar chart with an arrow pointing upward and gold stars

Our Impact By the Numbers: District Highlights

Caddo Parish Public Schools LogoCaddo Parish Schools, Louisiana

Caddo Parish students wowed us with their growth! We partnered with Caddo Parish for the spring of 2025. Assessment data reveals a tremendous growth difference when comparing fall semester growth to spring semester growth. 

  • 27% of students had average, above, or well above average growth in Fall 2024 (pre-tutoring) on overall composite scores
  • 70% of students had average, above, or well above average growth in Spring 2025 (OYM-tutoring period) on overall composite scores

FirstLine LogoFirstLine Schools, Louisiana

We couldn’t be prouder of our FirstLine students. FirstLine partnered with OnYourMark in September 2024. Their assessment data impressed us, with 73% of tutored students experiencing average, above, or well above average growth.

  • An increase from 1% to over half (57%) of tutored Kindergarteners achieving at or above composite benchmark status on end-of-year assessments
  • Of students who started the school year well below or below benchmark, more tutored students than non-tutored students achieved average, above, and well above average growth from beginning-of-year to middle-of-year (70% tutored v. 45% non-tutored)
a boy wearing headphones looking at a laptop

Our Impact By the Numbers: All Tutored Students

"88% of students met or exceeded expectations for growth in at least one skills assessment."

Session Attendance

OnYourMark’s average student attendance rate for 2024-25 was a staggering 76%. While studies are ongoing, current research indicates that this is consistent with averages. A research analysis from the National Student Support Accelerator at Stanford University shows average attendance rates between 72% and 79% for students enrolled in math tutoring using a similar delivery method (i.e., virtual tutoring).

Student Achievement and Growth

88%

Of tutored students met or exceeded growth expectations in at least one or more individual skill assessments, with 49% meeting or exceeding expectations in 4 or more assessments

54%

Of all tutored students met or exceeded growth expectations, with 34% achieving above or well above average growth on composite scores

 

175%

Increase in students at or above benchmark from beginning to end of year—nearly tripling the number of students at or above grade-level proficiency—from 12% to 33%

80%

Of students starting well below or below benchmark met or exceeded growth expectations in at least one literacy skill

These numbers are further proof that OnYourMark is setting the pace for early literacy success.

Hear From OnYourMark Tutors

Since our start in 2021, we’ve served more than 3,000 students, and while every student has different needs, one trend is the same for all of them: OnYourMark-tutored students consistently outperform (or outgrow) non-tutored peers.

Keep reading for some of our favorite tutor impact stories.

a headshot of a woman smiling surrounded by a blue circular frameMeet Donna Auwarter and her Student, Veronica*

The Student

Veronica* (3rd grade, Uplift Luna, Texas)

Starting Point

When Veronica started 1st grade in 2022, she was in the 11th** percentile for reading. 

Identified as a Tier 2 student, she began receiving OnYourMark’s tutoring services. By the end of the year, she had jumped to the 31st percentile—a 20% increase.

As a 2nd grader, Veronica worked with Donna Auwarter for 20 minutes a day, four days a week. By midyear, she had climbed to the 47th percentile, and by the end of the year, she stabilized at the 40th percentile.

Sustained Growth

In 2024-25, now in 3rd grade, Veronica no longer receives OnYourMark tutoring, but the impact of her time with Donna is undeniable. By midyear, she had soared to the 73rd percentile, achieving well above average growth in every measurable skill: letter sounds, decoding, word reading, reading accuracy, and reading fluency.

The Model

Consistent tutor-student pairings foster trust and the courage to take academic risks, building confidence.

“She went from being hesitant to read aloud to volunteering to read in front of her class. That’s the kind of growth that stays with a child for life.”
– Donna Auwarter

*Name changed for privacy.

yellow school bus

Oscar's Story: A Leap Forward and a Hard Goodbye

a little boy on a computer screen, wearing headphones, making a sad face, and giving a thumbs upWhen Oscar, a multilingual learner, started with OnYourMark, he ranked in the 11th percentile for reading. By the end of the program? 68th percentile—with 92% session attendance.

But the numbers only tell half the story.

On his final day, Oscar celebrated his progress with his tutor—smiling through the bittersweet goodbye to a mentor who’d become a friend. Like thousands of students we’ve served, Oscar’s growth wasn’t just academic. It was the confidence to thrive.

a blue, open laptop with a thought bubble coming out and a gold heart in the thought bubble

Hear From More of Our Tutors

“One of my students used to whisper and avoid reading aloud. Over time, with daily encouragement and praise for her progress, she began reading fluently and even volunteered to go first—something she’d never done before.”

Helen F.

OnYourMark Tutor

“I saw a student's confidence grow when I congratulated them on their hard work. A huge smile appeared on their face, and it sincerely warmed my heart to see how much it meant to them that their work had been recognized.”

Sascha S.

OnYourMark Tutor

“All my students are well connected to me. One of my students, Rob*, gained a lot of confidence and became a fluent reader! I always try to explain concepts before diving into them. I felt extremely proud of another one of my students, as after a few sessions, she started explaining the meaning of a blend and a syllable, and any other related concept. This made her do her activities with ease and confidence.”

Prajakta R.

OnYourMark Tutor

“I saw an EL student go from not reading and not speaking English to reading CVC books in English by the end of the year.”

Meghan W.

OnYourMark Tutor

“The best part of tutoring at OnYourMark is the relationships I get to create with my students! I love seeing their eyes light up when they really start to understand a concept. I also love knowing that I am fighting educational inequality one lesson at a time!"

Priya S.

OnYourMark Tutor

a blue, open laptop with a thought bubble coming out and a gold heart in the thought bubble

What Our Partners Say About OnYourMark Tutors

"OnYourMark has been a critical partner for us to support our struggling readers. The tutoring sessions are highly engaging and student data consistently reflects accelerated growth toward grade-level benchmark. We look forward to continuing this partnership in the years to come."

FirstLine Logo
Sabrina Pence

CEO, FirstLine Schools, Louisiana

“When people say, 'Well, it's virtual, you can't really do that.' I would challenge them. I'd say, 'Try it! Do a pilot and see if you still believe that afterward.'

You might think that it is harder to connect virtually, but for OnYourMark, it's not. They're just so mindful of the engagement and the relationships with students. I was just amazed at how quickly the kids really connected to the tutors.”

logo_lincolnschools-district
Dana Talley

Former Chief Academic Officer, Lincoln Parish Schools, Louisiana

"I know that the tutors are really invested in the kids. They've even said things like, ‘Hey, I have a concern about this scholar, here’s why…’

“I see the kids get excited to go to OnYourMark! So if it's Wednesday and we don't have it that day, they’re like, ‘No! No OnYourMark today?’ They're genuinely excited about being there and learning. I feel like OnYourMark’s relationship-building is definitely a strength."

uplift
Imani Thomas

Primary Dean, IB PYP Coordinator, Uplift Luna Preparatory, Uplift Education, Texas

"The tutors have been extremely kind and fun—no kids are resistant to go. They love the games, and you can tell the tutors know their students, even across the screen."

gestalt-logo__inline-color
Emily Powell

Literacy Supervisor of Instruction, Gestalt Community Schools, Tennessee

More About High-Impact Tutoring and Best Practices

Ready to Transform Literacy Outcomes in Your District?

In today's dynamic educational landscape, ensuring every student develops strong foundational literacy skills is more critical than ever. High-impact tutoring, grounded in the Science of Reading, offers a proven, evidence-based pathway to significantly accelerate learning and effectively close reading gaps.

At OnYourMark, we understand the unique challenges faced by district leaders and principals—from staffing limitations and resource constraints to the vital need for consistent curriculum implementation and addressing diverse student needs. 

Our high-impact tutoring solution is meticulously designed to integrate seamlessly with your existing strategies, providing flexible, data-driven, and highly personalized support that empowers both your educators and your students.

We are committed to helping you foster literacy growth across your district, ensuring every child receives the targeted instruction and caring relationships needed to achieve their full reading potential.

Discover how a partnership with OnYourMark can make a measurable difference for your students and your team. Have a member of our team reach out to you today.
girl making her hands into a heart for her virtual tutor

Get in touch with our team.

Contributors

  • Mindy Sjoblom, Founder and CEO, OnYourMark Education
  • Catherine Tierney, Head of Product and Program, OnYourMark Education
  • Jamie Thomas, Senior Director of Program, OnYourMark Education
  • Aaron Schlessman, Senior Director of Partnerships, OnYourMark Education
  • Christina Chester, Director of Tutor Development, OnYourMark Education
  • Caitlin Kindred, Senior Marketing Manager, OnYourMark Education