“Jim is an excellent teacher who has the knowledge, skill, and patience to work with a wider range of students. YouthBuild serves young people who have not been successful in traditional school environments, who may be living with learning disabilities, emotional and behavioral challenges, and a lack of trust and optimism about education. Jim is able to gain the trust of students with a consistently caring attitude. He goes the extra mile to make sure students are prepared to take the TASC test for High School Equivalency, scheduling one-on-one tutoring sessions that sometimes last for years after a young person “graduates” the program. He is responsible for teaching all five subject areas – math, science, social studies, reading, and writing – and is able to maintain content knowledge to balance instruction in all those areas. He also makes sure that students have access to the test, which frequently is scheduled at inconvenient times; he will volunteer to come in at 6AM on weekends to transport students to test centers. YouthBuild members and graduates who work with Jim show a high level of improvement in literacy and numeracy gains as compared to their peers in other YouthBuild programs nationally. Jim is also a resource for less experienced educators on staff, assisting them in developing lesson plans and handling the stresses associated with the job.”