All inpatients grades K-12th who are eligible for hospital tutoring during the school year. Hospital tutors from the Duarte Unified School District tutor each of our K-12th grade patients privately, one hour a day, Monday-Friday on school days. Hospital tutoring provides patients with normalcy and a distraction from hospital life. Additionally, tutoring by veteran teachers helps patients continue to develop mentally and catch up, stay on track, and sometimes even get ahead in their studies. Hospital tutoring makes the transition to home instruction and/or school after hospital discharge a more enjoyable and smoother process for patients.

City of Hope’s School Program Coordinator coordinates tutoring for students in K-12th grade. Hospital tutors are certified teachers hired by the Duarte Unified School District. Hospital Tutors at City of Hope have many, many years of school teaching and hospital tutoring experience.

City of Hope believes that children, teens, and young adults adjust better to the hospital setting by starting hospital instruction as soon as possible. Our School Program Coordinator meets with patient and parents in the first few days of admission to assess for educational needs and to arrange tutoring. Tutoring is coordinated to meet the patient’s medical, emotional, and educational needs. Tutoring sessions provide patients with daily routine and educational activities that complement their primary focus on treatment while hospitalized.

We suggest bringing all text books with you to the hospital. Tutors can work with your local school’s curriculum to help you stay on track and make returning to your local school as smooth as possible. If you are unable to bring text books, Hospital Tutors will provide text books from the Duarte Unified School District.

We believe that patients do better at the hospital when they are able to make their lives as normal as possible. Hospital Tutors help patients increase their spirits and provide patients opportunities for accomplishments and increased self-esteem. Hospital Tutors at City of Hope are experienced professionals and understand how to help patients balance their school work in the hospital setting.

Home instruction is for children, teens, and young adults eligible for K-12 education who are unable to attend school. Different school districts offer different forms of alternative education, many including home instruction.  Often times, school districts provide one-on-one tutoring in the home or independent study options for students unable to attend school.

Your local school district is responsible to provide alternative education by California Certified Teachers for K-12th grade students unable to attend school. City of Hope’s School Program Coordinator can help get you in contact with the right personnel in your local district to begin home instruction.

Contact our School Program Coordinator to start the process. Each school district is different, but most students will need to enroll in their local district and also have a medical letter written by their City of Hope doctor describing the medical need for home instruction. Our School Program Coordinator is glad to arrange for these letters and send the paper work to your local school district. Give us a call and we’ll help you get started.

Treatment and healing are different for each patient. Our School Program Coordinator will consult with your City of Hope medical team to help you to determine the best timing for you and your family. We have found most patients do best when they start home instruction sooner rather than later because it provides patients with motivation and creates opportunities for accomplishment, normalcy, and increased self esteem. Home instruction is also a critical component to successfully returning to school when ready.

Our School Program Coordinator can help you start this process. Often times, patients need to reenroll in their local school. If you have previously been in hospital tutoring or home instruction, the School Program Coordinator can help you and your family walk through the steps to return to your local school. Often times many students choose to inform their school administration of their previous medical treatment and how it currently impacts their school experience. If any special accommodations are needed, we can help advocate for these services as well.

Treatment and healing are different for each patient. Our School Program Coordinator will consult with your City of Hope medical team to help you and your family decide when is best for you to return to school. We have found that most patients do best with a gradual, but prompt return to their local school, because it provides patients with socialization, normalcy, accomplishment, and increased self-esteem.