Finding the right support for every student in a district as diverse as Palm Springs Unified School District is no small task.
PSUSD serves over 21,000 students across five California cities, each with unique populations and needs. The district needed an effective way to seamlessly provide academic support tailored to individual students and their families, and their previous solution wasn’t the right fit.
“The tutoring services we were using weren’t meeting the needs of our students,” says Dr. Amber Gascoigne, Director of the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program. “It was too cumbersome for our parents, and it just wasn’t working.”
Learning a new language or building math confidence isn’t easy—but when instruction is tailored and supportive, big changes happen fast.
Tatyana Santiago’s 2nd grade daughter, Katerina, struggled with PSUSD’s dual immersion Spanish program. “She was having a hard time speaking Spanish in class,” says Santiago. “Her teachers said she understood a lot, but it was hard for her to get the Spanish out when answering questions.”
Other parents faced similar challenges. Nancy Arellano’s 7th-grade son, Antonio, struggled with math, and Melissa Galataud noticed her 1st-grade daughter, Bodhi, lacking confidence in the classroom and doubting her academic abilities.
PSUSD knew they needed something different. When Gascoigne connected with the Carnegie Learning team, she discovered its high-impact math and literacy tutoring solution was exactly what they were looking for. The district launched personalized, one-on-one and small group virtual tutoring sessions in 2024, offering students additional support in math and literacy, including bilingual support and dual immersion sessions, outside regular school hours. Over 900 students in grades TK-12 across 27 different schools participated.
Reflecting the design principles for effective tutoring by EdResearch for Recovery, all tutoring services instructors are certified teachers and experts in their content areas. Tutors utilize high-quality instructional materials (HQIMs) and real-time data insights to reinforce what students learn and align curriculum to support grade-level, core instruction.
In 2025, the service was awarded the Tutoring Program Design Badge from Stanford University’s National Student Support Accelerator. This recognition highlights Carnegie Learning’s commitment to maintaining rigorous standards in tutor selection, program efficacy, dosage, data privacy, and high-quality instructional materials.
“Carnegie Learning asked us for scope and sequence and our curriculum needs,” says Gascoigne. “The content the tutors present to the kids matches their instruction in the classroom. That’s been huge for us.”
For Gascoigne, receiving actionable information on student progress is also critical. “I never had access to data with our previous partners, even though I asked for it,” she says. “Carnegie Learning has exceeded my expectations in this area. The amount of purposeful data it has provided is incredible. It’s a true, in-depth look at what students are doing on standards across the board, and that’s been helpful for our district, as we see the value in it.”
Katerina, Antonio, and Bodhi don’t know that district administrators receive regular progress updates or that their tutors create personalized learning experiences with standards-aligned HQIMs.
They just know they enjoy their sessions.
"I like that I learn a new thing every time. My tutor helps me learn new words in Spanish and she's very nice," says Katerina as she describes her tutoring experience and the joy of learning a new language.
The immediate feedback and one-on-one access to his tutor make all the difference for Antonio. "I can ask questions right away. I don't have to wait until the end of class. It helps me learn pretty easily,” he adds.
Bodhi simply states what matters most. "It's really fun, and it makes me feel happy. What I love most is learning."
The parents unanimously agree that the tutoring sessions have significantly improved their children's academic performance while keeping learning enjoyable.
Katerina speaks more Spanish in class. “Her teacher says she’s able to produce the language in the classroom,” says Santiago. “She’s much more confident about answering questions and participating in discussions. Her reading and comprehension ability have for sure gone up.”
Arellano agrees that Antonio is also more self-assured. “I see him being more confident and making progress,” she says. “I don’t have to remind him that he has tutoring–he does it on his own. That speaks volumes. He likes the program.” His academic improvement is evident—Antonio's math grade improved from a B last semester to a consistent A this year.
Galataud appreciates the encouraging approach the tutors take with her daughter. “The tutors have been extremely friendly and kind and have made her feel supported,” observes Galataud about daughter Bodhi’s experience. “It’s nice to have people who clearly understand the developmental needs of an elementary student.”
She adds, “The fact that Bodhi likes it and looks forward to it is everything.”
K-12 teachers and administrators nationwide have many responsibilities, and the faculty and staff at PSUSD are no exception.
“I see Carnegie Learning as an additional support we can’t provide on the day-to-day,” explains Gascoigne. “Teachers are exhausted. They have a lot of responsibilities outside of being educators. The tutors help take the pressure off the teachers.”
Gascoigne and her team value the direct communication between tutors and parents. “We don’t have to play middlemen. The parents appreciate that, and it’s been a huge help for my team.”
Galataud also values the consistent scheduling and direct communication. “I get an email and a text message reminder about the sessions. It’s really helpful because sometimes my schedule is hard to manage.”
Arellano agrees. “The communication is great. I get text messages and emails. If Antonio can’t attend, there’s a link where I can excuse the absence. The communication is good and easy.”
Katerina is shy with new people, and her mom appreciates the consistency of the tutoring staff. “They are like a friend to her. They want to have a connection and it makes her more comfortable,” says Santiago.
“It’s really important to our students that it’s face-to-face,” explains Gascoigne. “Knowing that our kids get to see a tutor and build a connection with them has been huge, and that’s not what we had seen with other companies.”
What’s in store for the Palm Springs Unified School District students? More tutoring opportunities moving forward, including this summer. “It’s fun, enjoyable programming the kids look forward to, and it’s huge for families who are concerned about the academic break or those who want to make sure their kid doesn’t lose any of the knowledge they gained during the past academic year,” said Gascoigne.
The families of Katerina, Antonio, and Bodhi plan to continue with tutoring next year, anticipating further academic improvements for their children.
Gascoigne looks forward to the continued partnership. “The Carnegie Learning team goes above and beyond,” she says. “They want our kids to be successful. This is beyond a team effort. The Carnegie Learning team is just as much a part of our kids’ success as I am.”
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