Math is so important in our world but learning it can be fraught with personal challenges. Helping others to achieve their goals in math lights up my world!
I have always had a love for math since as long back as I can remember. After 2nd grade I even asked my mom if I could take math in summer school to keep from getting bored! Can you imagine that? A kid who wants to learn math in the summer because she just couldn’t get enough of it!
I have a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Purdue University, a Masters degree in Environmental Engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology and am a licensed professional engineer. Click Here for Linked in Profile
While a senior in undergrad, I tutored freshmen and sophomores in math. I met bright, capable students who at some point along the way just got “bogged down” in math and didn’t know why. I saw it affect their self-esteem and self-confidence. One of my best days tutoring back then was when after weeks of working with a student who had been struggling with math, they said to me with a big, bright smile “Math isn’t so hard – you make it fun!”
After college, I spent the early portion of my professional career in business analyzing the financial health of companies. I then changed careers and spent the last 17 years as an environmental engineer working one-on-one with local communities to help them turn their polluted, vacant properties (that had been abandoned by closed industries) into something beneficial for their neighborhood.
Through this work, I learned how to communicate complex scientific and mathematical ideas in simple and straightforward ways to community persons without a math or scientific background. I broke down problems into their basic parts and taught others how to solve the problem one step at a time. I helped others organize their work and manage their work load and timelines.
In 2018, I began volunteering at By the Hand Club for Kids in Cabrini Green helping middle schoolers with their language arts and math homework. From there I began private tutoring students. Through these experiences the spark inside to help people discover the fun in math was rekindled. In 2020, I became certified by the National Tutoring Association and formed Math by Margaret Tutoring, and in August 2021, I also became a math tutor working out of the Academic Support Center at Malcolm X College/City Colleges of Chicago. I currently have spent over 3,000 hours tutoring both students and adult learners!
What else can I tell you? I have been married for over 20 years, adore animals and the natural world, love both playing and listening to music and enjoy travel to new places!
Margaret Renas, NTA Certified Math Tutor, P.E., LEED AP
