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Hate math? Then get a math tutor! Or go to the Museum of Mathematics.

Without a doubt, math is a useful/necessary skill in everyday life. But for some students, math is tainted with painful memories of grueling math tests, confusing equations, and long hours of homework.

But just because you (or your child) dislike math doesn't mean that you're destined to feel aversion to it for the rest of your life. If your child is struggling with math, please give them some academic enrichment. Hire a math tutor who can break math down into easy concepts and actually make it fun. 

It always makes us smile whenever we hear back from clients who tell us how our tutors helped their children go from hating math to actually looking to their math tutoring sessions.

Math can certainly get very complicated, but if you view it as a puzzle waiting to be solved, then it can actually be pretty fun. Math tutoring can help students learn to tackle problems from a more strategic/methodical view point, and this is a skill that will certainly prove useful for the rest of their lives.

Besides getting a math tutor in NYC to motivate/inspire your child, you might also want to consider bringing your child to the Museum of Mathematics, which is scheduled to open in 2012. The museum will contain interactive exhibits, such as a tricycle with square wheels. It's fun AND educational-- a win-win for everyone! We can't wait for its grand opening next year.

Photo credit

Interview with the new Managing Director of CUTTA

Deborah Feng

Where are you from? 

I’m from New York City. I was born in Queens but grew up in Manhattan.

What are you studying?

I’m majoring in East Asian Languages and Cultures and concentrating in Business Management.

What do you like most about Columbia?

The people! Columbia is bustling with talented students and professors that are eager to help others. Everyone is so accomplished and motivated, it’s hard not to feel inspired on a daily basis!

What is your job at CUTTA? 

As the new Managing Director of CUTTA, my job is to supervise all aspects of the company, including its finances, operational processes, human resources, marketing, etc.

As an entirely student-run business, CUTTA aims to provide the best possible services to our clients while providing job opportunities to Columbia’s most talented students. As I start my leadership term, I want to make sure that we are keeping our clients happy. If you were satisfied (or dissatisfied!) with anything from the previous management term, please let me know so that I can make the immediate and appropriate changes to ensure your future satisfaction.

What is the best thing about CUTTA? 

The best thing about CUTTA is that it is an entirely student-run business that offers premium tutoring and translating services to our clients. Our employees are incredibly bright, and our clients are wonderful. It is honestly an honor and a delight to be the new Managing Director of CUTTA!

International presence at US campuses

The amount of international students and foreign scholars within the US universities have increased a lot for the past decades. This is happening even though it has been even harder to obtain visas to the US after 9/11.

I think this is great. The students get a sense of what it actually means to be a global citizen. What would Columbia University be without its diverse and international student body. I'm personally very proud to be part of such a great community as Columbia.

The article below is taken from New York Times and it also discusses the increase of foreign scholars and leaders around at the US campuses. This is also necessary if a nation wants to stay competitive. The US is doing very well in higher education just because they attract the best scholars from all over the world.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/10/education/10presidents.html?_r=1&scp=4&sq=foreign%20students&st=cse

Our student run business, Columbia University Tutoring & Translating Agency (CUTTA), is managed by a different student every year. This year our manager is Swedish, but has lived in the UK and Norway as well. Next year there will be an American student running the company. To get to know the other student employees around me from all around the world is priceless and it really enriches my life a lot.

-Jakob

New railway system in the US. It is about time!

After having remained behind the rest of the developed world for a long time it is not a second too early that President Obama announces a commitment to improve the US railway system.

We stand in front of one of the biggest challenges that the humanity has ever faced, the climate change. I'm sure that I'm not the only one promote this brilliant idea from Obama to develop the American railway system. Even though there is no excuse that this did not happened earlier in a developed country like the US, later is still better than never. One reason why this project did not come into place earlier, some people say, is because many Americans have a very close, "romantic" relationship to their vehicles. The article below is taken from Scientific American.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=coming-to-america-high-speed-rail

According to their calculations, by engaging in this project, the US would reduce the carbon dioxide by around 188,000 ton. It is time to put the political ideologies to the side and do what is bets for our beloved mother Earth. The Republican governor of Florida Rick Scott decided to reject $2 million in federal funding for a high speed rail line between Tampa and Orlando. We will see if he is willing to rethink his decision before Florida is completely under water.

More college applicants on the waiting list than ever in 2010

You think it's going to be hard to get into the most selective universities in the nation? Well, this year it's probably going to be even harder. As the colleges' budgets restrain even more, the number students put on the waiting lists for the Ivy-Leagues and other selective schools is growing. Duke University was on top of that list in 2010 with roughly 3000 students placed on the waiting list. The strategy for the high school graduates is to apply to as many colleges as possible to increase their chances. It was not strange for a high school senior to apply to up to 15 different colleges last year. My general wondering is how it is going to be this year now that the application deadline for fall is approaching. I have a feeling it's going to be a battle field even worse than last year.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/14/education/14waitlist.html?_r=1&ref=admissions

High school students in NYC are not prepared for college

Only 23% of high school graduates met the standards for college preparation in 2009 in NYC. In spite of these seemingly terrifying statistic we are still better than off than many other urban districts such as Buffalo, Syracuse, Rochester and Yonkers. See article below from NYtimes.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/08/nyregion/08regents.html?_r=1&scp=9&sq=students&st=cse

This seems to be a system disorder and if the system disorder doesn't get better then we will loose our competitiveness internationally. According to the article, the "readyness" for college rate is much higher in wealthier districts than in more poor districts. Perhaps a solution would be to let the student and family decide what high school to go to rather than being assigned the closest one. In this case we would force all the public schools to get better.