The Rays of Sunshine, a service and tutoring organization at Villanova University, provides tutors to five local schools and two nonprofits in the Greater Philadelphia area seven days a week, writes Shay McDowell for The Villanovan.

Individual tutors visit with students from elementary school through senior year in hour-long sessions once a week.   

 “Our main priority is to try to fill that gap in education that urban schools face,” Executive Director Anna Darling said. “Our primary goals are educational equity and service.”

Tutors foster genuine relationships with their students, thanks to frequent visits.

Rays of Sunshine tutors also offer an SAT and ACT prep course on Saturdays for high school students.

It lets the students have a positive experience on a college campus as they celebrate their hard work.

Darling said she came from a struggling town where education was not prioritized.

 “I used to work at a YMCA back home, and these kids just were trying to be kept off the streets at this point. It didn’t matter what grades they were getting in math.”

Looking ahead, Rays of Sunshine hopes to add two more tutoring sites to its operation.

Read more at The Villanovan about Rays of Sunshine.