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‘The needs are really, really enormous’: High demand for volunteer tutors for DC-area students – WTOP News

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‘The needs are really, really enormous’: High demand for volunteer tutors for DC-area students – WTOP News


With classes back in session, a major drive is underway to recruit a legion of volunteer tutors needed for students throughout the D.C. area.

A booth for the D.C. Tutoring & Mentoring Initiative at Adams Morgan Day in D.C.(WTOP/Dick Uliano)

With classes back in session, a major drive is underway to recruit a legion of volunteer tutors needed for students throughout the D.C. area.

At the Adams Morgan Day festival on Sunday, the D.C. Tutoring and Mentoring Initiative spread word about the need for 60,000 volunteer tutors and mentors needed across the region. Only 4,000 were enlisted last year, according to Tom Pollak, the organization’s executive director.

“We’ve got two out of three kids reading below grade level, even more needing help with math,” Pollak told WTOP. “We support more than 50 different non-profit organizations and schools and we need folks who can help out just one to two hours a week.”

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On Saturday, at a D.C. After-School Fair at the Deanwood Community Center in Northeast D.C., parents and students browsed dozens of tables of information on after-school programs. Many of the more than 60 offerings on display were devoted to tutoring.

“Our primary focus is STEM and STEAM: science, technology, engineering, math and changing the minds of the youth in Washington D.C. to move in a more positive direction,” said Amos Drummond, operational manager of Positive Focus Foundation, a nonprofit group that tutors D.C. students.

At the end of each school day, tutors from Drummond’s group fan out to D.C. schools where they sit with kids as they do their homework.

“Our main goal is when parents pick the young people up at the end of the day, the homework is already completed, and that builds confidence, and self esteem and cognitive skills in the youth…the kids do their homework and that takes pressure off the parents,” said Drummond.

The D.C. Teaching and Mentoring Initiative matches volunteers with 50 partner tutoring and mentoring programs in the District and the suburbs.

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Some volunteers come in during the school day, while others work with students right after classes end or later in the evening.

“We have flexible programs and virtual programs where you could connect up with your mentee on the weekend at a local coffee shop or at a location that worked for you,” Pollak said. “A lot of our partners can also get free tickets to local sporting events, things like that. So you can take your mentee, could go to the local sporting event, or go for a hike, get a lot of different options. The needs are really, really enormous.”

Because the school year is young, Pollak said the ensuing days and weeks are good times to become involved.

“I can’t tell you how fulfilling it is, how satisfying it is … working with an elementary school kid in third grade, maybe who’s struggled to learn how to read … or your mentoring a high school student or middle school student.” said Pollak.

“You don’t have to have a college degree either,” Pollak added. “Just caring adults that’s what we say is the main criteria.”

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Washington, D.C

Thousands turn out – again – as third 'No Kings' rallies take over Maryland streets

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Thousands turn out – again – as third 'No Kings' rallies take over Maryland streets


Thousands turned out at the dozens of No Kings rallies scattered across Maryland, part of the millions expected across the country for the third such event. In Maryland, turnout was particularly heavy in Hagerstown, near a proposed ICE detention facility.



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WATCH LIVE: No Kings march and rally in DC

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WATCH LIVE: No Kings march and rally in DC


Thousands are expected gather in Washington, D.C. for a “No Kings” march and rally. 

Here’s everything you need to know:

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What is the No Kings protest?

What we know:

Organized locally by area chapters of Indivisible and allied grassroots groups, the event aims to draw protesters to downtown Washington and surrounding counties to oppose policies of the Trump administration and to voice broader concerns about civil rights and democratic norms.

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No Kings protest details

Timeline:

The march will kick off at 10 a.m., with participants gathering at Memorial Circle near Arlington Cemetery, with additional access from the Blue Line or nearby parking at the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City, according to the event organizers. There is no public parking in the immediate area, but participants can be dropped off at the circle.

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From there, the procession will head across the Memorial Bridge into Washington, D.C., passing the Lincoln Memorial and continuing on to the Washington Monument.

At the conclusion of the march, participants can walk to a downtown rally, from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Other ‘No Kings’ rallies in the DMV

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Dig deeper:

In addition to the main rally in downtown D.C., several other demonstrations tied to “No Kings 3” are scheduled around the DMV this Saturday.

In Arlington, Virginia, activists are organizing a march across the Memorial Bridge beginning at 10 a.m., with protesters expected to continue into West Potomac Park before joining larger crowds in the District proper, for example. 

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There are hundreds of “No Kings” events scheduled to take place this Saturday throughout the DMV. You can click here to find a list of all of them. 

How to watch No Kings march and rally in DC

What you can do:

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FOX 5 DC will be covering No Kings in D.C. all day on FOX LOCAL and in the liveplayer at the top of this story. 

FOX 5 DC is available to watch for free on Roku, Amazon FireTV, Apple TV, Google Android TV and Vizio with the FOX LOCAL app. Here’s how to download FOX LOCAL on your mobile phone. 

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‘Strong smell’ shuts down flights at major DC-area airports for the second time this month

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‘Strong smell’ shuts down flights at major DC-area airports for the second time this month


A reported “strong smell” at a key air traffic control center disrupted flights Friday evening at major airports across the Washington, D.C., region for the second time in two weeks.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) temporarily halted flights at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD), Baltimore/Washington International Airport (BWI), Charlottesville–Albemarle Airport (CHO) and Richmond International Airport (RIC), the agency told FOX Business in an email.

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The FAA said the disruptions were due to a “strong smell” at the Potomac Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) center, which manages airspace in the region.

GROUND STOP LIFTED AT MAJOR DC-AREA AIRPORTS AFTER CHEMICAL ODOR DISRUPTS AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL

An FAA air traffic control tower at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Va. (Samuel Corum/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

It was not immediately clear what caused the smell.

Ground stops at Dulles, Reagan National and BWI remained in effect until around 8 p.m. ET before being lifted, according to the FAA’s website.

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NEWARK AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS LOST RADAR, RADIO COMMUNICATIONS WITH PLANES FOR OVER A MINUTE, SPARKING CHAOS

The FAA said the disruption was due to a “strong smell” at the Potomac Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) center. (Flightradar24)

As of 8:30 p.m., Reagan National was experiencing ground delays, while BWI continued to see departure delays.

Earlier this month, a ground stop was similarly issued at several airports in the Washington, D.C., region after a chemical odor was detected at the TRACON center.

FATAL LAGUARDIA COLLISION RENEWS FOCUS ON RUNWAY INCURSION RISKS ACROSS US

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Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy speaks at a news conference at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. (Heather Diehl/Getty Images / Getty Images)

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The temporary ground stop March 13 similarly affected DCA, IAD, BWI and RIC, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said at the time.

Duffy said the smell came from an overheated circuit board, which has since been replaced.



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