By Ross Murray, originally posted 1/26/10 in the Southlake Journal
Ian Anderson is not your average high school senior, at least in some ways. He goes to class like everyone else, he does his homework and he socializes with friends at lunch at Carroll Senior High School. But this student, who truly loves to learn, has turned his passion into an unusual business for someone his age.
Carroll Tutors is a tutoring service Anderson began after hearing complaints from friends about various tutors they had who were not working out. It’s a common refrain, as most students and parents know. But for Ian, the cogs started turning and he decided to research local tutoring services.
It was then that he stumbled upon HP Tutors, a tutoring service started at Highland Park. The idea was simple: Juniors and seniors who have already taken a course can tutor freshmen and sophomores in the tougher and trickier subjects. He quickly contacted HP Tutors founder, Vic Ramon, and began a dialogue that led to Carroll Tutors opening as a franchise of the HP Tutors program.
Next, he recruited and hired 15 tutors, and then began getting the word out to students. These included Facebook announcements, flyers, e-mails and of course, word of mouth.
They have just recently taken on their first client, and at $35 an hour it’s quite a deal when compared to other tutoring services.
“Starting Carroll Tutors has really taught me to keep an open mind and to realize that opportunity is everywhere,” the young entrepreneur observed.
So far, Ian is still trying to identify the subjects that will be most in demand. At Highland Park, the subjects most commonly tutored arebiology, algebra, chemistry and geometry.
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