91²Öæā has more reasons than ever to celebrate National Tutoring Week (Oct. 5-9) this year.
Not only has the collegeās tutoring hub, the Academic Skills Center, successfully mastered COVID-19-safe assistance, but it has earned accreditation in the midst of the pandemic.
The WCC Academic Skills Center is now a National Tutoring Association-certified program. The program was assessed on its leadership plan, tutor training process including the requirement to have an NTA-certified trainer on staff, and a self-evaluation and program outcomes plan. The accreditation lasts for three years.
Dr. Brandy Daingerfield, the centerās director, said that it was āa rigorous processā that also scrutinized the programās COVID-19 response. She had to have a telephone discussion with the NTA executive director to address the centerās COVID-19 reaction and she believes the administrator was impressed.
āWe set the bar for other colleges because we didnāt stop,ā Daingerfield said.
āWe immediately transitioned from in-person to virtual tutoringā when the rest of the collegeās operations moved online last spring. āIt says a lot about the quality of the tutors. I could not have hand picked a better team. I did the training one day and they started virtual the next.ā
The center continued operating remotely through the summer term. This fall, tutoring is being offered in a hybrid environment, with limited in-person appointments available. Accessing online assistance is as easy as logging in and clicking on a few links.
āStudents are still getting face-to-face assistance, even though it may be through a computer monitor,ā Daingerfield said.

The move to working from home in the spring allowed Daingerfield, who had just started working at WCC, the opportunity to dive into the accreditation process sooner than she had planned.
āOne of the first goals when I was hired in January was to get the program accredited but I didnāt want to disrupt the flow. With remote working, I started it and had several months of putting together the notebookā of required materials, she said.
For proof that tutoring programs meet and maintain standards of quality, āthere is no federal regulation, just this association,ā Daingerfield said. āThis shows we are at the top of this iceberg.ā
Another of her goals is āto have peer tutors (students who tutor other students) trained to at least basic level, professional tutors trained to at least intermediate level, and coordinators I encourage to go to the top,ā Daingerfield said.
āThey know how to tutor, but I want to add to their knowledge base, give them more strategies, and help them update processes,ā she said. āIt would be adding a layer on this already phenomenal process.ā
Daingerfield is certified by NTA to train tutors, coaches, and mentors. āTraining insures that they are practicing at their level of ethics and competence,ā she said.
Additionally, certification is a valuable credential for an individual tutor, she explained, and it will be recognized by other tutoring departments at which peer tutors might wish to work.
Through NTA, individual certifications are available for basic level tutor, academic coach, intermediate level tutor, advanced level coach, and master level tutor.

This week, Daingerfield is rewarding the centerās tutors with goodies, including bags and thermal cups custom printed with āTutors Can Do Virtually Anything” and the center’s name.
She is also encouraging tutees to leave notes with comments and compliments about their tutors on a bulletin board in the center and on social media, which puts the contributors into a drawing for a special prize.
āThis is sort of a spirit week for tutoring,ā she said. āWe are working to overcome the stigma of ājust a tutor.āā
Tutors, she explained, build a bridge between instruction and application, make personal connections and support students, and take some of the load off of instructors.
Daingerfieldās dedication to tutoring is complete. āI was meant to be a tutor. This is where I found my passion,ā she said.
About the National Tutoring Association
The National Tutoring Association is the oldest and largest association dedicated solely to the advancement of tutors. Its mission is to foster the advancement of professional and peer tutoring, mentoring, academic coaching, and support research into the best practices and standards for all tutors, support tutor training, advocate for tutor certification, and uphold the NTA Code of Ethics.
91²Öæā
91²Öæā is a public, learning-centered institution with an open-door admission policy located in Goldsboro, N.C. As it works to develop a highly skilled and competitive workforce, the college serves 11,000 individuals annually as well as businesses, industry, and community organizations with high quality, affordable, accessible learning opportunities, including more than 140 college credit programs. WCCās mission is to meet the educational, training, and cultural needs of the communities it serves. Connect with WCC atĀ waynecc.edu.
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