Innovation

Many children in the United States suffer from learning disabilities. In the public school system, there are staff on board that provide assistance to students that require specialized services. In private schools, however, there is not usually an employed educational support specialist. Child Ability is an independent contractor of the Department of Education, and staffs certified specialists to work with children with Individual education plans. These certified specialists work to help students achieve certain goals and objectives indicated in an Individualized Education Program (IEP) and become more successful in their academic endeavors. According to Magdelena Kormusis, “We work with students who have dyslexia, behavioral needs, autism, dyscalculia. It all depends. Every single student has different needs. There’s not one student that is alike, just like a fingerprint.”

Magdelena Kormusis, President of Child Ability, has developed a pro-bono portion of her business with the goal of providing assistance to “Students whose families cannot afford interventions, and cannot afford to help them.” This program has benefited both the students and the tutors. It inspired many of her pro-bono tutors to work in the private sector of special education and for Child Ability once they become certified. By working with Magdelena from a young age, these individuals have developed into responsible young adults whom she can trust to provide support to her students the same way that she can. This is important as many educators are currently steering away from the private sector and would rather work for the Department of Education directly.

Inspiration

Magdelena Kormusis has been working in the education industry for many years and has found that many students with learning disabilities who attended private schools were not given the appropriate academic support. Even though all children are entitled to special education services by law, it is not as easy for those who are outside of the public school system to acquire such services. Magdelena saw that there was a lack of special education providers that worked within these schools and that this offered the perfect opportunity to enter the industry. Speaking about the period shortly after the initial development of her business, Magdelena said “had a forty-person waiting list that I knew I would not be able to get to, so I started hiring people that would express and treat children the same way that I would.” It is not a simple task to find the right staff and people that represent what your business is all about.

Magdelena has taken a different approach in how she hopes to grow her business and maintain its mission and core values. Working in the school system for years, she has seen children of all different backgrounds, and how some struggle to attain access to affordable education that best suits their needs. While the cases that are assigned to her through the Department of Education are funded by the state, there are some students that “may not be mandated to receive services but need a little bit of help and are falling between the cracks.” These students cannot afford the tutoring services that they need. In response to this Magdelena is working on further developing the pro-bono aspect of her corporation. She knows that by doing so, she can both have a positive impact on the community and also find tutors that she can trust and possibly hire in the future. By bringing these tutors into the company at a young age, she has encouraged many of them to want to come into her field and work in the private education sector. Additionally, pro-bono work has helped to shine a positive light on the business, and made it well known among educators. It has made people trust the organization and turned it into something much larger than what was initially intended.

Overall impact

Child Ability’s special education services allow students that attend private schools who require educational support to reach their full academic potential. By getting the help they need, students become more confident and independent in their studies. They learn to focus and do more on their own. Magdelena states that “Since my business is smaller, I am able to offer a very personalized system. Even when I staff a provider with a case, I do not disappear from that family or the school. I keep a very tight, close relationship with the principals and staff of the school.” This allows her to ensure that all of the children that she works with have their needs being met and resolve any issues efficiently. As a result, this has kept the children, parents, and staff in the school more than content with her services.

The pro-bono portion of her business has also had a significant impact on both the tutors and students that work with the firm. According to Magdelena it has taught the tutors “Community service, and giving them opportunities to learn what it is to impact someone individually and really make a difference in someone’s life.” Moreover, these tutors are learning at a young age that everyone has a different way of learning, and that in order to be successful as an educator you need to be patient. These individuals have developed a connection with the students that they provide assistance to and have become their mentors. It has demonstrated to them how good it feels to see progress in an individual that you work with. It has also provided a lasting influence on their lives. This has allowed Magdelena to scout educators that she can hire in the near future when they complete their master’s degree. Since she has already worked with them for a few years, she knows that she can trust them to deal with her students properly.

Business benefit

Magdelena Kormusis, President of Child Ability, states that her organization specifically focuses on providing special education services to private school students in NYC. She describes that public school students receive special education easier than private school teachers since the staff is already on board. Since her business acts as an independent contractor who works in collaboration with the Department of Education, it allows for the agency to provide services to students of private schools.

Another way Child Ability uses innovation to benefit their business is through their pro-bono program in which volunteer tutors provide academic assistance to students whose families do not have the resources to afford them. Magdelena Kormusis successfully shapes these individuals to conform to her values and to deliver the same degree of care as she does. Since the students meet their educational needs and the volunteers themselves gain more hands-on experience in teaching and being in the educational environment, the agency is able to build a strong foundation. They give a chance for individuals to grow and learn in the field but also create long lasting relationships with their students who need extra help. This provides an opportunity for the business to employ these individuals in the future, since they can be trusted, and already have gained a sense of the organization’s goals and objectives.

Watch video on YouTube

Social and environmental benefit

Education is extremely important and every child should have access to special education support programs in their communities. Child Ability LLC. enables highly motivated students to volunteer and work with children who are in need of help and services to succeed in their education. All children should be entitled to educational programs and many students enrolled in private schools are not able to access special education services as well as students in public schools do. This business provides educational support for those who are not able to access them as easily as others, as well as providing services for those whose families are unable to afford other programs.

It encourages anyone interested in the field, whether they are students or entrepreneurs, to see what it is really like to work with these children face to face and what they go through as they pursue their education in their everyday lives. These mentors, both students and volunteers, are able to earn first hand experience form the lives of the children they serve. Each student is unique and requires different services. Child Ability, LLC. is more than the typical education support program. It is personal and highly individualized to each student and always ensures that their needs are met, and educates the mentors around them to support their communities and the children who are in it. These volunteers are then able to work in their own communities and make a real difference in the lives of students and as they continue to grow as individuals.

Interview

Magdelena Kormusis, President

Watch video on YouTube