MILWAUKEE — As the founder of “Back to the Basics Tutoring,” Kiyana Mensah likes to make learning fun.

What You Need To Know

  • Kiyana Mensah founded Back to the Basics Tutoring five years ago

  • She said she's seen students be anywhere from three grade levels to ten grade levels behind where they should be

  • Some of that, Mensah said, is because of the pandemic

  • She is hiring more help, as the tutoring business moves to a bigger location and expands its services
 

On a recent Wednesday night, she spent time with four elementary school students, turning vocabulary and math work into a game.

"What we were doing here is just allowing them to have social interaction with their peers, but also work on their skill levels where they are and challenge them so that they can grow but also use it in a way where they’re not feeling like it’s hard," Mensah said. "It’s more so of a game, and you’re focusing more on the game of winning instead of the education piece, so it’s kind of a win-win for us.”

She started her tutoring business five years ago. Originally, she wanted to be a lawyer, but changed her plans as she wanted to help students from straying down the wrong path.

"In the metro Milwaukee area, I saw how many people are struggling and not on grade level, so that is kinda how we got started," Mensah said.

In the last five years, she’s worked to help a lot of students.

“It’s just been lots of deficits. We’ve seen children be anywhere from three to 10 grade levels behind and then that was kind of exasperated by the pandemic," Mensah said.

She works with children and even adults. That includes helping with grade school work through GED programs and more. 

Like the name of her business, she goes “back to the basics” to see where the gaps in learning are, and then works to fill them.

She has seven employees. Three tutor students in person and four do it online. In all this year, they are helping 23 students of all ages.

That number has gone up every year.

“It’s definitely high in demand," Mensah said. "We’ve outgrown our space that we’ve been in. We tried to stay here as long as we could but we definitely need to move on because the demand is so great, and parents are realizing just how far behind their students are, and we want to make sure we can accommodate them.”

Mensah wants parents to know that seeking extra tutoring and help for their kids isn’t anything to be ashamed of. She said no matter the situation, families, and even adults needing some help are not alone.

Back to the Basics tutoring is hiring as they move to a new location and expand their services. Click here for more info.

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