Nine-year-old Sahir, whose family is from Mexico City, is quick to smile and tell about his dreams. When he grows up, he wants to study “animals that lived a long time ago, fossils and things.”

“If I want to be an archeologist, I have to read different books and know different facts,” he says, “For everybody who helps, I thank them a lot.”

Sahir began working with a tutor when his first-grade teacher suggested he was the perfect candidate for the children’s STARS program. At that time, Sahir was a reluctant reader who knew only the alphabet and the letter sounds; he couldn’t decode a word like “mop.” In just one summer, Sahir’s reading progressed an entire grade level. In the next year, he surpassed many of his English-speaking classmates.

When asked what he would say to someone else who wanted to follow in his footsteps, Sahir says, “I would bring my tutor and show him what we do. I’d say that it’s not scary, that your tutor will be very nice and take you to the theatre.” When asked how far he wants to go with his own education, Sahir leans forward in his chair and grins, “All the way!”