THE most important resource in a "One-on-One Tutoring Center is the Teacher/Tutor.

SERC is home for the best of the best. All SERC Tutors are certified Teachers with College Degrees in Education and innumerable years of Classroom and One-on-One Tutoring experience. Below is a brief Biography of the Tutors currently teaching at SERC:

Ferne Rubin (Owner/Director since 1981) is known to the students as "Miss Ferne". She has successfully implemented various programs at SERC facilities. Ms. Rubin graduated from Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts with a B.S. in Education.

As a teacher in the Philadelphia Area School Systems, she realized there was a need for additional programs for students not succeeding in the traditional classrooms. It was then that she enrolled in the Pennsylvania State University Graduate School of Education. In 1973 she received her Certification in Special Education enabling her to teach children with memory problems, attention disorders, dyslexia, auditory and visual processing difficulties.

Moving to Sarasota in 1981 she launched SERC as she felt there was a need for a Tutoring Center specializing in programs for children who had difficulties in the conventional classroom.. The Center has evolved as the premier One-on-one tutoring Center in the Sarasota area with a current staff of eight (8) educational specialists.

Miss Sally is a Graduate of Syracuse University where she earned her B.S., M.A., and PhD from the Department of Reading and Language Arts. Her teaching career began in the Manlius, NY Elementary K-3 Grades as a Classroom Teacher. Subsequently, she worked in the Dewitt, NY and Minoa, NY elementary schools as a Reading Specialist who taught remedial reading, was a Consultant to teachers and developed Title I reading programs.

Upon returning to Syracuse University for further studies she was an Instructor in Literacy Development, and supervised teams of Graduate students in planning, diagnosis, and remediation of disabled readers. After promotion to Visiting Professor she directed the Syracuse University Reading Clinic. Her next career was at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Geneseo where she taught and developed undergraduate and graduate courses in Literacy Development.

Concurrently she was the Reading/Literacy consultant to the Special Education faculty and students at the BOCES #1 Satellite School, Monroe County, NY. Arriving in Sarasota she was an Adjunct Professor at the University of South Florida where she taught Reading Comprehension and Vocabulary courses. Miss Sally is now SERC's Reading and Dyslexia Specialist and PhD in residence. She tutors all ages, performs diagnostic evaluations, customizes programs, and consults with the other tutors on the most difficult cases.

Mr. Paul has his B.S. in Science and Mathematics from E. Stroudsburg University in Pennsylvania and his M.S. in Mathematics from Jersey City State, New Jersey. Before coming to SERC he taught Math and Science for twenty-five (25) years in New Jersey and Pennsylvania Secondary Schools, thirteen (13) years at Ocean County Community College and ten (10) years at the Sarasota Achievement Center. As SERC's longest serving tutor, Mr. Paul specializes in Algebra, Geometry, as well as FCAT/SAT/ACT preparation. Mr. Paul has been with SERC for the past fourteen (14) years and is SERC's longest serving tutor. Most of Mr. Paul's students are in Middle or High School.

Miss Joanne has her BA in Elementary Education with a minor in Spanish from Queens College of the City University of New York. She also holds an M.ED from the University of Utah and taught 3rd and 4th grades in Salt Lake City for 6 years. After moving to Indianapolis, she taught over 25 years in preschool through 1st grade. And she is a licensed Florida K-6 educator.

While in Indianapolis, along with her teaching, Miss Joanne trained in the Lindamood- Bell phonemic sensory program and coached students in reading. She is an avid fan of this program which develops phonemic awareness as a conduit to strengthening reading and spelling skills. It involves a progressive sequencing of letter/sound association through a sensory-cognitive approach. Miss Joanne also earned an endorsement in Early Childhood Special Education. Moving to Sarasota in 2002, she taught 1st grade at Goldie Feldman Academy (GFA) for 4 years. After her retirement, she continued to work at GFA for a few more years as the reading resource teacher for the primary grades. She then joined the happy SERC family where she continues to help students gain confidence and develop a solid foundation in reading, spelling and math skills.