THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, October 19, 1994 TAG: 9410180108
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 06 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY LORI A. DENNEY, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 86 lines
SQUARE ROOTS driving you nuts? Physics got you mystified?
How about sentence composition or chemistry equations?
Dwayne Boone can help.
Boone owns and operates PMA Tutoring Service. He'll tutor anyone at any time and just about any place.
He has tutored by mail, by fax and even over the telephone.
``I think that level of dedication is what sets me apart,'' said Boone, a Portsmouth resident, whose office is in the Pembroke area. ``I sacrifice myself quite a bit.''
He's open seven days a week and practically 24 hours a day. He once tutored a college student, who was behind on her studies for mid-term exams. They spent 12 hours together, taking breaks only to eat. She passed her exams.
Last year, he met a student at his office at 11 p.m. The student had a computer project due the next day. He and the student worked until 2 a.m. to finish the project.
Boone's formula for effective learning starts with a positive mental attitude - hence the name PMA.
``Students who come through need a boost in their motivation and self-esteem,'' said Boone, a 32-year-old Norfolk native. ``The first thing they say is, `I can't do it.' If I can just get them to say, `I can do it,' then that's all I need to start.''
Boone, or one of more than 100 other tutors he has on his database, will help educate anyone from preschool age and up in math, computers, engineering, physics, chemistry, biology, accounting, business, economics, marketing and languages, including English, just to name a few.
The cost for a 15-minute, one-on-one session is $7. Rates for an hour of tutoring are $25 for college students, $20 for those in grades seven through 12, and $18 for those in kindergarten through sixth grade.
Special rates are available for two-hour study sessions, also. Customers can pay with prepayment discounts. For instance, for $92 up front you are entitled to $100 worth of tutoring.
With more than three years of full-time tutoring and four or five years of part-time tutoring, Boone has seen a variety of students. He tutors students from all over Hampton Roads, including the daughter of two schoolteachers who drive to his office from Suffolk. He also will tutor in homes, businesses or libraries. Group tutoring is also available.
He is a graduate of Wilson High School (formerly Manor High) and a 1987 graduate of Old Dominion University. He joined the Navy shortly after high school. While stationed in California, he was selected for the Navy Broadened Opportunity for Officer Selection and Training (BOOST) Program, where he earned a scholarship to ODU.
While attending ODU for his bachelor's degree in computer science, he was asked to tutor other students.
After he graduated, it was back to life aboard a ship and a Navy uniform. All the while, he continued tutoring on the side.
A year passed and Boone decided to take advantage of Navy downsizing and got a discharge and began tutoring full time.
``I'd always wished I was back tutoring,'' said Boone, who is single. ``Just being able to help somebody made me feel appreciated.''
Using his savings, he leased a building in Norfolk, near the ODU campus. His only other major business purchase was a $1,000 used computer. He also took classes in accounting so he could keep his own books.
He soon realized that most of his students were Virginia Beach residents and the Norfolk location wasn't easy for them to find.
That was three years ago and Boone's business has been in Virginia Beach ever since.
He used his own marketing savvy to promote his business. He printed fliers, which he posted at local colleges. Word-of-mouth has been his best advertisement, he said. MEMO: To reach PMA Tutoring, call 497-0600.
ILLUSTRATION: Staff photos by CHARLIE MEADS
Michelle Engelhart, left, a student at Tidewater Community College,
receives tutoring for her physics class from Dwayne Boone, owner of
PMA Tutoring.
A stack of textbooks shows the kind of variety of subject matter
dealt with by more than 100 tutors at PMA Tutoring.
by CNB