By ninth grade, Ramona Elliott’s daughter Tyler had completed all the math credits she needed for graduation and could have easily gone three years without another math lesson, but her mother had other ideas. “She could’ve gone without math, but we were advised that it’s not a good idea, so I knew she’d need a tutor,” Elliott says.

A busy working mom married to an equally busy dad—former Arkansas Razorback Marcus Elliott—Elliott had no clue how she was going to fit high-level tutoring into their hectic schedules. She found the answer during dinner one night at a local restaurant when she struck up a conversation with a friendly server who just happened to be a math whiz.

“I don’t remember how the subject came up, but I mentioned that we were looking for a math tutor and he said, ‘I do something like that,’” Elliott recalls.

Her server was Dave Bobbitt, a University of Arkansas at Little Rock graduate who was looking for students to tutor so he could refine and test the techniques he would later use to create ACTHelpCenter.com. At the time, he had recently launched his Algebra Is Easy online tutoring service, a springboard for his ACT Help Center.

ACT Help Center is a web-based test preparation program for students getting ready to take the college entrance exam. During the three-day webinar, Bobbitt and a colleague walk students through four hours of math training, two hours of science and two hours of language.

“Tyler didn’t actually take the webinar because we were in the early stages, but Dave was the perfect tutor for us because we could come home and I wouldn’t have to make one more trip to one more place,” Elliott recalls. “I could get started on my chores while she was getting the help she needed.”

Elliott says she was reassured that hiring Bobbitt was the right decision after sitting in on one of his sessions with her daughter, who now attends George Mason University in Virginia. “He has the perfect temperament for working with students. No question is a dumb question. He shows them how to work out each problem,” she says.

Bobbitt says after tutoring several friends, he realized he had a knack for it: “Teaching in a classroom isn’t exactly right for me but I love math and I knew I wanted to do something with my passion,” he says. “Once classmates figured out I was good at math, they started coming to me and I realized that I could help students but not be bound to a classroom.”

Bobbitt says after developing Algebra Is Easy, he worked for about three years on the ACT Help Center curriculum. He says he can accommodate up to 1,000 students per webinar.

“I remember when I took the test, and it can be intimidating,” he says. “I want to make students confident in their ability to reach their goal, whether it’s improving their score by a few points after they’ve already taken the test or earning a healthy score on their first time out.”

The ACT is administered six times a year. “October of senior year is the most popular date for students to take the ACT or SAT, but often this is a retake,” says Kat Cohen, who heads a college admissions counseling service based in New York.

“The standardized tests aren’t the sole determining factors for college admission, but they definitely matter,” says Dean Kahler, vice chancellor for enrollment management at UALR. “A student’s achievements are measured via academic achievement, standardized tests such as ACT and SAT, writing good essays and having good interview skills, as well as through other portfolio activities such as school and community involvement,” he explains.

“While no one factor is an indicator of a student’s ability or achievements, colleges and universities do rely heavily upon standardized test scores for admissions decisions, placement into college courses, as well as in consideration of awarding scholarships,” Kahler says.

Peak performance requires preparation, Kahler adds. “Prep courses can provide individualized mentoring for a student and parents who want to advance and need more personalized guidance,” he says. “My best take away advice is start early, take the exam multiple times, learn from and build upon past experiences to improve upon your next test.”

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L. Lamor Williams is a freelance journalist and Public Relations Account Executive for Mangan Holcomb Partners.