A Free Tutoring Service: Preparing For the Future "Oprah Show Ideas"
The following
30 or so pages
provide a
glimpse
into our powerful Free Tutoring Service.
For a more detailed description, go to the site itself. After viewing our
Website, click on the Oprah hyperlink
shown below.
Then click on the "Join now for
Membership" link at the top of the
page
( To Link into the Oprah
Show, go to: http://oprah.com/plugger/templates/BeOnTheShow.jhtml Click
on this link and... Note! Become
a Member first! Fill out paperwork to obtain your
user name and password; These will be sent via
e-mail to you. Follow the instructions to become a Member. Your comments will
then go directly
to the Oprah Producers!
Click the comments about...question and fill out form. It takes a few
seconds
for e-mail connection to Oprah Show. Please be patient!
Tell Oprah about the Organization
that has the power to turn "F" grades into "A" grades!
"A Free Tutoring Service")
Dear Oprah, For a Blitz of Mathematics and Science, go to Oprah5A For a Tutoring Overview, Go to Grant Letter 1: Grant Letter 2: Grant Letter 3 : Grant Letter 4
Recently, a parent to one of the students of "A Free Tutoring Service: Preparing for the Future" said to me, "I think you should be a guest on the Oprah Winfrey Show. You do so many wonderful things to help our Black youth with their education." Click on....An Afro-American Family: United for Education
If you are not familiar with our Free Tutoring Service, please view our website. We are impacting the lives of so many of our youth in regards to education. If you then agree with most of the parents and supporters, then click on the link below and tell Oprah all about us. Thank you, and see you on the show!
(
Today: April 1, 2006 (
Original message: July 21, 2002) 
Background music by..New Philadelphia
A.M.E Church, Carson, California)
I took issue with the words of this parent because of three reasons. First of all, our Free Tutoring Service is open to all Races; secondly, I seek no recognition for anything that I have done because God has led me to do it. He deserves the recognition; thirdly, I believe our Organization is too minuscule to be on such an important show as the Oprah Winfrey Show.
But then something drew me up and out of bed at this early morning hour of 4:00AM on this Sunday, July 21, 2002 to consider whether this Organization is a minuscule one, or what?
Is this Tutoring Service that has impacted the lives of nearly 300 students a minuscule one... or what? Does it matter that the Organization has led so many of its students and some of the parents to God? Does it matter that God is ordering all of the steps of this miraculous Organization? Does it matter that some of the students have come from the County of Los Angeles Social Services Department. And we have worked diligently to rehabilitate the troubled teens? Does it matter that we set our goals for perfection (students making all "A" and "B" marks), while realizing that some will fall short of those goals? Does it matter that some students might be influenced by the negative forces of their environments, yet we will never give up on them until we have counteracted those forces! Please view our website for some of our counteracting forces against drugs, alcohol and promiscuous sex among our teens. Does it matter that more than 30 Professionals volunteer their time...for free... in this endeavor?
I asked those questions of myself time and time again. I asked myself to come up with reasons as to why this Organization should or should not fall into the category of one that deserves national recognition as that which would certainly be bestowed if it were to appear on such a widely viewed television show. I asked myself if others would be called to volunteer their services in helping to educate the children of America if they were to see the fruits of our efforts.
Is it a minuscule Organization? You can bet that it is certainly not!
This Organization has impacted the lives of many Black youth, all right. It has also impacted the lives of Black parents, as well. It has dealt with all Races of people. It has counseled parents and their children. It has led some to a wonderful church by the name of New Philadelphia AME, Pastor Doctor Sherman A. Gordon, in the City of Carson. Families have been saved, confrontations between parents and their teens eliminated, and the fires of love have been set ablaze. Grade point averages have been substantially increased!
Confidentially
, yesterday a parent sat on the front porch of my modest mobile home in Dominguez Hills and poured out her heart to me. She apologized for the mental treatment (unknowing to her until I told her of it) inflicted upon her 15-year old son. She begged my forgiveness for mentally and sometimes physically abusing (though very slight) him. She assured me that she was now taking "parenting classes" as well as educational ones, to better the lives of her son and herself. She gave me a wonderful hug and took her son home with her for the afternoon. Today, he will return at 2:00PM to face me as I tutor him and 5 other teens in high school geometry. The parent has placed her son under my "educational protective care" for at least the next 3 years of his life and I have promised her that his grades would move from all "F’s" to all "A’s or B's". He is now interacting with me on a constant basis. I have promised her that he will become one of the greatest lawyers that the world has ever known....or anything else he chooses to be. How do I know this? Because God is ordering the steps of this Tutoring Service, and the student has already made "A’s" and "B's" in Summer School in all of his classes. I have guided him along the way…with God’s help.Our Organization is akin to 20 "Doctor Phil's", all wrapped into one!
This 500-home mobile home park is ideally suitable for carrying on this work.
It is situated in the County of Los Angeles, between Compton, Carson, Long Beach
and Los Angeles. It is very expensive to live here, especially on a retiree’s
income. It receives students from each of these cities. It is a guarded
community, so students walk around unconcerned about the worries of the outside
world; they learn electrical theory; they function, study hard and they
function. They learn all phases of math and science. They
work the many problems
(click, if you dare!) found on the tough
examination on this site! They learn Chemistry,
Biology and sometimes, Calculus. They learn Binary Code and the inner working of
a computer. They "piddle" around with CPU’s and motherboards and
make connections to CD-ROM’s and "slave" Zip Drives. They acquire
Engineering skills and Secretarial skills. They excel in their Middle and High
Schools. They take field trips to places such as New York City, Washington D.C.,
Las Vegas, Hoover Dam and San Francisco. They calculate the Gravitational
Constant "G", and find it to be 32.2-feet per second-per second, just
as Perrault did back in the 1800’s, with the use of the
Foucault Pendulum.
They calculate "G" by allowing an object to fall from a definite
height and calculate the time it takes to fall. They use the
"distance" formula to calculate "G", again. They use the
accumulated Internet links of 4+ years to watch the dispersal of light through a
prism and they watch the brilliant display of chemical power as a reaction takes
place on the site,
www.webelements.com.
They calculate the "escape velocity" (7 miles per second!) of an
Intercontinental Ballistic Missile from good old Earth. They calculate the
friction of sliding bodies; the Kinetic and Potential Energy related to a roller
coaster; the Electrolysis of Water. They take notes as they ride around the Port
of Los Angeles, being made aware of Commerce and the trade deficit. The scurry
around a tide pool to investigate the life found there. They frolic in the waves
of Royal Palms Beach in San Pedro and have a wonderful time in learning! They
study; they study and they study. They visit the Observatory, the Los Angeles
Science Center and the La Brea Tar Pits, time and time again. They scan the many
CD-ROM educational disks at their disposal and they do Mavis Beacon Teaches
Typing and have fun doing it. They scan the Human body with a CD entitled
"The Ultimate Human Body", and they marvel at the intricacies of the
Human body. They are taken through what I call a "Biology
Blitz", a
"Physics Blitz", and a
"Chemistry Blitz". They do mock
trials, where some serve as Defense Attorneys and others serves as Prosecutors.
Others serve as members of a jury. They argue the Death Penalty and Rowe verses
Wade. They really have a good time doing this! They learn all about the working
of the Government and they see United States History through the eyes of our
fictional Black slave, Sam Jones of the 1750’s. They do
website design and use
the Digital camera in their work. They also use such sophisticated electrical
quantity measuring devices as the Fluke Digital Volt-Ammeter and the Digital
Clamp-On Ammeter. They calculate the distance to far off galaxies and they watch
the impact of comets as they slam into Jupiter. They plan imaginary trips to IO,
and other moons of Jupiter and receive extra-credit for their efforts in their
High Schools. They do extra-credit work for their respective Middle and High
Schools and the teachers stand amazed at their educational prowess. The teachers
call oftentimes to give us a pat on the back for our efforts. Of course, we sit
in the classrooms of many of our students on a regular basis and take classes
right along with them. We interact with the schoolteachers and they appreciate
our being there. That gives us a distinct advantage when it comes to helping
with homework. We transport the students from school to our tutoring sessions
and back home again when that becomes necessary. God keeps us very strong in our
efforts. The students are indeed being prepared for the future…and God is
blessing us all of the way!
The students listen to the lectures of no less than 30 Volunteer Professionals; Those Professionals range from Doctors to Dentists, to University Professors, to Engineers, to Lawyers, to Postal Supervisors, to Television Executive Producers. All of the Professionals have given their time for free to these students of mostly "single mother" households.
Was I very happy living in the upscale community of Laguna Niguel, California? In my very expensive home for 5 years? With my new luxury automobile with the 16-inch chrome wheels and the sheepskin seat covers in the garage? And the new cherry-red minivan? With the hillside view, kidney-shaped pool and Jacuzzi? Was I happy to sit and watch the world go by with all of its educational needs and problems? I don’t think so! My wife and I picked up bag and baggage and high-tailed it back to the City of Los Angeles and its thousands of problems. Are we very happy in doing what we do? Spending time as well as tons of money in this educational struggle? In this upscale mobile home park? You can bet we are!
But, why am I rambling on about this Organization? After all, its activities are listed on the Website, www.weteachfree.com (A Site that is maintained by the students)
Oprah, this is the second letter that I have written to you. The first was written in February of 1999 when I asked you for a computer or two. I had just begun this Organization. I suppose that letter got lost in the shuffle. Since my first request, I have become expert at building and programming our own computers. They are not the best, but they love us and have agreed to do our bidding. Two of our Volunteer Tutors are Computer Programmers (Orlando and Rita Alexis) and have taught the students and me a thing or two about the inner working of the gigabyte and the megahertz. They have taught us how to build a complete computer from scratch. Of course, this knowledge is shared with other students on our Website, just as all of the knowledge accrued over these last four years is displayed on the Website. Please visit the Site and witness the Power of God at work in the lives of His people.
Did I forget to mention the wonderful Kaiser Hospital Doctor? Doctor Cheryl Browne of Kaiser Hospital, Harbor City, in the South Bay? She is a most avid Professional Volunteer Tutor and is as dedicated as me when it comes to education and preparing our youth for the future. She oftentimes lectures the students on the fine points of being a medical Doctor. Did I forget to mention the wonderful Children’s Dentist, Doctor Gardner Beale of Southwest Los Angeles who teaches the students about how to take care of their teeth, as well as the knowledge about Dentistry as a career? Doctor Beale gives the final O.K. to students of Dentistry at USC, you know. Let us give special recognition to Marci Williams, A LAUSD teacher, who came over for more than 2 years with her two young sons to teach the students the Spanish Language, all while gaining her Masters Degree. Let us give all praises to God for sending us such dedicated Volunteer Tutors. The number is growing by the day!
Is this a minuscule Organization, or what? If you consider it an important vehicle for our youth, then perhaps it would be a great idea to appear on your show.
Back to our "Doctor Cheryl", as we so affectionately call her: she has dedicated her life to community work. No matter whether it is setting up a conference on A.I.D.s at New Philadelphia AME for the youth or accompanying the students on field trips, our Doctor Cheryl is always there.
Our budget is a very, very small one, because I, Cleophas "Mike" McAlpin, as Director and Chief Tutor, have very little time to ask anyone for anything. My time is better spent in teaching the students and their parents all that God has placed in my mind to teach, and that is a plenty! Incidentally, no one in this Organization gets paid for his or her services! We are a "true" Federal and State of California nonprofit Corporation.
Did I forget to mention that our Organization stands for physical fitness? I
am a young 55+ years of age and intend doing another
Los Angeles Marathon in March of 2003.
Marathon 2006: Update!
(The Long Beach Marathon has offered up a
few medals to me, also) Some of the students will most certainly join me as they
joined me at mile #20 of a previous marathon. We march in A.I.D’s Walks (City
of Carson) and we attack cigarette smoking, alcoholism and drug use on a daily
basis. We listen to lectures by our own Los Angeles Policeman and Volunteer
Tutor, Abdullah Karriem, of the
Southwest Division Police Station, as he directs
our students away from a life of crime. How awesome!
All of the activities of this Organization are input onto the Website on a weekly, and sometimes daily basis. Please view our Site www.weteachfree.com and let us know what you think of our efforts.
Are we a minuscule Organization, or what?
I thank you for taking the time to read this letter. It was meant to be a short one, but I have become a writer (perhaps, not a very good one) after nearly 30 years of trying. I have written no less than 100 short stories and a book or two, none of which have been published because I am too busy with the students of…"A Free Tutoring Service: Preparing for the Future". I am sending one or two of my stories to you via this site. Please view the following pages that have been set up so that you might see the Power of God at Work! There will be approximately 30 pages and some will contain a few short stories, along with newsletters, cards, etc. that relate to our Tutoring Service. The stories have been copyrighted.
Your Humble Servant,
Cleophas "Mike" McAlpin
19009 Laurel Park Road # 348, Dominguez Hills California 90220
(310) 635-4536
Music..."Speak to my Heart"...By New Philadelphia A.M.E. Church choir www.nuphilly.com