At Dugsi Academy, a charter school in St. Paul, students are 50 percent below average in Minnesota state proficiency tests in both English and Mathematics, according to a study in 2017 done by Public School Review. Edina High School juniors Ryne Reger, Shaylynn Reger, and Owen Brown are working to bridge this achievement gap.

Twins Ryne and Shaylynn Reger did not have to go far to become inspired to help. “My mom teaches at Dugsi Academy in St. Paul, and she was talking about how some of her students needed help to understand some materials. I thought it would be a great idea to go over to the school and help them,” Ryne Reger said.

“We started tutoring in late August and we do it every Saturday for two to three hours,” Brown said. Because they tutor on Saturdays, most of the students are at the Masjid Attaqwa Mosque, which is adjacent to the school. “The students, after they leave the Mosque, come to the school to get tutored,” Brown said.

The program is open to all students that attend the school. The session sizes vary depending on how many kids attend the religious service beforehand. “Around fifteen kids come to each session. Ryne, Shaylynn, and I all have about two to three kids each that we tutor,” Brown said.

Brown and the Reger twins tutor in all subject areas, depending on the academic level of the students. “One second you could be teaching a little kindergartener how to add and subtract, and a couple minutes later you could find yourself teaching high schoolers chemistry or advanced math,” Shaylynn Reger said.

They all concur that it has been a very rewarding experience. “I love being exposed to different cultures, new people, and being able to connect to them through education,” Ryne Reger said. “It’s really cool to see the impact that our education has on them and how we can shape their future education,” Brown added.

“I love building a fun and stable environment for the kids, while at the same time teaching them basic problems that will help them down the road such as reading and multiplication. I also love the wide range of [academic level] we teach,” Shaylynn Reger concluded.