Today we’d like to introduce you to Carmela Merced.
Hi Carmela, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
My passion for teaching developed early. As a young girl, I remember writing in my diary that I wanted to be a missionary and a teacher. I looked up to my teachers and wanted to be just like them. Teaching was part of God’s design for my life-from using our school books to teach my younger sister, teaching Sunday School since my teens, to peer tutoring during my school years. It seemed like I was always involved in some sort of teaching environment. I’ve also always had an insatiable thirst for learning. Once I graduated high school, I struggled with what to do. I was discouraged from choosing teaching, so I decided to study business. This quickly proved to be the wrong choice. I was doing well academically but was miserable. Two years later, with the support of my husband, I decided to finally enroll in an Education program. My life was truly transformed! I knew that I was in the right place!
As I started my teaching career, the inexplicable joy I felt when students had learned because I had facilitated a learning experience was exhilarating! However, I was heartbroken for those students, who no matter how hard they tried or how hard I tried to help, were making little to no progress. At that time, I did my best to encourage and support them with the tools I had, but I knew that they needed more than I could offer.
Once I became a mother, teaching and learning took a new turn. When our first daughter was born, I did what I could to make sure that she had a strong academic foundation. Despite my efforts, as she started school, I noticed that she had academic struggles, especially in the areas of auditory processing and memory. They were not severe, but enough to where I would come home after a long day of teaching and would have to sit with her for hours to thoroughly review what she had done at school that day. Her learning struggles were not only affecting her grades, but also her emotional and mental well-being. After having her evaluated, it was recommended to enroll her in an Educational Therapy program. I had never heard of this before, despite all of my previous teaching experience.
We decided to give Educational Therapy a try. The results were amazing! This was a non-tutorial method in which she would receive one-on-one attention. Not only were the therapists working on her areas of development, they were also helping her recognize her areas of strength and how to build upon those foundations. My daughter was learning how to learn and how to become an independent learner! She was developing her thinking and processing skills by using cognitive-based techniques, tasks, and exercises.
From day one, I was intrigued and fascinated by the work the educational therapists were doing! I immediately recognized that that was the missing piece I had been looking for that would help my students overcome their learning struggles. I soon enrolled in an educational therapy training program. After three years of intensive courses, practicums, and observations, I completed my professional certification as an educational and cognitive therapist. A new dream started then: open my own learning center where I could have more of a personal impact and where I could have the flexibility to implement individualized learning strategies.
Once my training was completed, I continued to teach in a regular classroom for several years. At the same time, after hours and during the summers, I also tutored and worked with educational therapy students. My students were now experiencing tremendous gains, all due to the new skills I had acquired!
In 2020, when we were sent home due to the Pandemic, I decided to act upon my dream of opening my own learning center. Since then, I have been able to serve students in-person and online in different areas: tutoring for all subjects, including SAT, ACT, and GRE, academic testing, homeschool programs design and support, educational and cognitive therapy, reading programs, and executive functioning programs.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Getting to where I am today has not been easy. For years, I struggled with insecurity and fear. I feared that I was not going to be good enough or bold enough to pursue my dream. As I was entering college, I was unsure of what career path I should follow and whether that career path was going to be worth it. Throughout my classroom teaching career, I also experienced disappointments that have made me stronger. I have also faced health issues that have made taking this leap of faith challenging, but at the same time, have helped me understand that I must maintain a balance between work and my personal care.
We’ve been impressed with Educational Enrichment Center, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
At Educational Enrichment Center, we serve our students and families by providing individualized academic and learning support. Our main goal is to help our students become independent learners. We believe that all students can learn independently of age, socioeconomic status, or learning struggles. In order to accomplish this, we help students enrich their learning experience by targeting cognition, perception, academics, and emotions.
What sets us apart is that we approach teaching and learning from a therapeutic perspective. We aim to implement educational and cognitive therapy strategies into all of the services we provide. Because learning is a team effort, we seek to build rapport with our students and their families and treat them with integrity and respect. We also work on building relationships with our students’ teachers and schools.
We provide tutoring for all grade levels in all subjects, SAT, ACT, and GRE tutoring, academic evaluations, homeschool programs design and support, educational and cognitive therapy, reading programs, and executive functioning programs,
Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
Some lessons I’ve learned along the journey are to always seek wisdom and knowledge. Learning doesn’t stop when you graduate. I have learned to recognize that it’s okay if I don’t know everything. It’s wise to surround yourself with people who can guide you.
Laughter is good medicine. This also applies to learning. When students and teachers can laugh together, not only do you build rapport, but the learning experience becomes more meaningful.
It’s always worth it to have integrity and loyalty, no matter the cost. Students and parents value these qualities. Because of this, students trust you and feel secure that you’ll be available not only for academic support, but also for emotional support. They learn to trust you and you become much more than a tutor; you become an essential part of their lives.
Wonderful things happen when you have an attitude of gratitude, even when things are not going as planned. Bitterness and anger only add more problems.
However, the most important lesson that I have learned along my journey has been to always trust in God’s plan for my life. No matter the obstacles that I have faced, God has never let me down. He has led me through His path, despite the detours in life. He wants what’s best for us, and once you realize that, your fears, objections, and the sense of “I can’t do this!” dissolve.
Contact Info:
- Email: educationalenrichmentservices@gmail.com
- Website: educationalenrichmentcenter.com
- Instagram: educational.enrichment.center
- Facebook: Educational Enrichment Center
Image Credits:
Carmela Merced and Carlos Merced
