By Suzanne Schmidt
Staff Writer
For the next couple months, visitors to Knowledge Points at 2201 Collier Parkway might see a familiar face.
Richard Wendlek, founder of Academy at the Lakes, will be the interim director at the tutoring center until he leaves in June to be the head of an independent school north of Atlanta, Georgia.
“When Rocky was launching Knowledge Points, he and I got to know each other,” Wendlek said. “When I found out his director left, I came in to see if I could help. I am just here on an interim part-time basis while he is searching for a permanent director.”
One of the reasons Wendlek came to Knowledge Points is because he likes the way the tutoring center does things.
“It is wonderful to see when the light bulb goes on and they understand something,” Wendlek said. “It helps them to feel good about themselves. The materials here and tutors are top quality. They are accomplishing great results. I would say about 95 percent of students realize their goals.”
Rocky Contreras, president of Knowledge Points, said he was sure Wendlek was the best person for the job.
“He is the most credentialed, experienced and beloved person in education in Pasco,” Contreras said. “This is very short term but it was too good of an opportunity to pass up. He is one of the few people who could step in and fill in wherever it is needed. I didn’t want the quality to drop because we were short staffed and I also wanted to get his input on how we could further improve.”
Contreras said he hopes to learn from Wendlek’s experience.
“When you look at the size of the organization he built, there is so much he learned there,” Contreras said. “He is such a valuable resource. I plan to use his expertise during the hiring process for a new director.”
Knowledge Points provides individualized tutoring.
“We use a diagnostic approach,” Contreras said. “Before the students even spend one hour with a tutor, we do an in-depth assessment of their strength and weaknesses. We learn where their learning gaps might be and build on what we know. The issue might have less to do with what they don’t understand today and more to do with something they missed in the past.”
Through the tests, tutors learn what the students need to succeed.
