Meet Alice Graham, lifelong Concord resident and owner of Learning with Purpose, a tutoring service focused on K-6 students in the Cabarrus County region. While she’s technically a retired teacher, she will tell you that there’s no place she loves more than the classroom. If there is a student needing more support, Alice is ready to help.
Earlier this year, with the help of the Rowan-Cabarrus Small Business Center, she was able to open her beloved “mini-classroom” in downtown Concord where most of her tutoring magic now takes place.
As a child, a love for reading was instilled in her by her kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Mary Francis Wall. She would walk to her local library and devour books all day long. Her desire to learn grew until she became a teacher herself.
“I have always taught in Title I schools with kids who are at risk,” said Alice. “I believe education is a way to break generational poverty.”
Alice knew her “retirement” from teaching would not be the end. She took her years of teaching elementary and middle school students, as well as experience as a tutor, literacy coach and interventionist, and decided to start her own business. And she knew just where to go.
A few years back, Alice and her husband had attended a few seminars from the Rowan-Cabarrus SBC when they were considering a business idea. While they didn’t end up pursuing that business, she remained on the email newsletter list and reached out when she had questions about starting her tutoring business.
“Meg was really helpful in answering questions about how to advertise my business and get things started,” Alice shared. “If she couldn’t answer a question for me, she would always come back to me with answers or resources.”
Now that her business is up and running, Alice says referrals are coming in and she is able to help so many students, especially in the areas of reading and math.
When meeting a student, the first thing she asks them is, “Tell me about you as a reader.” Many will say they don’t like to read. With a smile she responds, “You don’t like to read because you just haven’t found the right book yet.”
When talking about the need for tutoring Alice said, “Most kids do not get all that they need during the instructional day. After Covid, some kids are lacking skills. I’m here to serve as an extra support.”
When looking to the future, Alice is ready to serve more students and continue to live out the mission in her business name by always offering her students purpose in what they are learning. You can find Learning with Purpose online at www.learningwithpurpose2022.com or contact Alice at learningwithpurpose2022@gmail.com.
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