Policies and Terms of Service

All tutoring must take place is a public and accessible space. No student and tutor will ever be isolated behind a closed door or away from public view.

A parent or guardian (21 and older) must be present for the entirety of in-home sessions.

All virtual tutoring sessions will be recorded for transparency and safety.

Payment for sessions must be made immediately following the scheduled session. Payments not made within 24 hours of a session will incur a 25% late payment fee based on the cost of the scheduled service.

Acceptable payment methods are cash, Venmo, Zelle, or PayPal. No personal checks accepted.

An invoice will be sent within 24 hours of the end of a scheduled session for your records.

The client and tutor will exchange contact information including phone number, email, and if needed, home address.

This information will never be shared with anyone outside of Acorn Tutoring or used for any purposes other than those related the services purchased.

Parents must provide written permission for the sharing of student contact information with the tutor if they wish to allow their student to contact the tutor directly.

Sessions are scheduled directly with your tutor. Once scheduled, they will be added to the calendar and you will receive a calendar invitation with the agreed time and location.

Virtual sessions will be scheduled the same way and include a link to either a Zoom or Google Meet session (student preference).

Clients are allowed to book sessions for up to three weeks at a time.

The location of the tutoring session should be a public place agreed on by the tutor and client.

Notable locations include local libraries, cafes, and outdoor parks.

Tutors will not purchase food or drinks for students. Students may bring their own snacks or purchase them with their own money if provided by the location chosen.

Virtual appointments will be held on Zoom or Google Meet as preferred by the student.

In-home tutoring is available, but please review our No Closed Doors policy.

Students are expected to arrive on time to their scheduled sessions. If you expect to arrive later than the scheduled time, you must communicate that time with the tutor.

The tutor may offer an extension of the time to fulfill the scheduled duration, but they are not required to do so.

There is no prorating for late starts owing to late students.

If the tutor will be late, they will communicate with the parent or guardian. Late starts resulting from the tutor of 15 minutes or more will be compensated with a 15% discount or priority rescheduling.

Any session cancelled less than one hour before the scheduled time will incur a fee at 15% of the session cost.

Cancellations must be made by email, phone, or text.

If no communication is made and the student fails to show up within the first 30 minutes, the tutor reserves the right not to reschedule.

Rescheduling a session can be done directly through your tutor with due consideration of the cancellation policy.

Times may vary.

Your tutor will arrive on time, clean, and in appropriate attire.

Tutors will help students work through course material, provide relevant instruction, and offer valuable tips on study skills and organizational habits during each session.

To ensure that students get the most out of their tutoring sessions, students should have all their study materials ready to go at the beginning of the session, such as class notes, homework, textbook, pens/pencils, calculator, laptop, etc.

NOTE: If the student does not have study materials from school, it is primarily the client’s responsibility to acquire relevant worksheets and curriculum, however, the family can collaborate with the tutor on this, if desired.

Additionally, students (and parents) should not expect the tutor to simply do the students' school assignments for them; the tutor will help the students work through material themselves.

Siblings and friends may not attend individual sessions. Please schedule Pair or Group Sessions as needed.

Acorn Tutoring does not provide English Language acquisition programming (i.e. Learn to Speak English).

We have extensive experience working with English Language Learners at all levels and will work with you to create a tutoring program that meets your ELL needs.

Parents may disclose IEP/ILP information if they choose to do so.

All information shared with the tutor is subject to all FERPA privacy laws. No information will be shared with outside agencies or individuals.

Disclosure of IEP/ILP information is entirely voluntary and not a requirement for solicitation of services.

Tutors working with children are mandated to report incidents and suspicion of child abuse.

Reports may be made to the child's schools, Law Enforcement Agencies, and Child Services as required by law.

Reporting records are maintained by Acorn Tutoring for 10 years.

Tutors are unable to provide transportation for students.

Tutors will also not release students to rideshare apps (i.e. Lyft, Uber).

Students must be transported by the parent or guardian on record or the approved additional contact provided during your intake.

Both the client and tutor may terminate services at any time for any reason. Clients will be charged a cancellation fee if the termination overlaps with the cancellation policy.

We understand that circumstances change and will do our best to accommodate you as needed.

If a tutor fails to communicate or attend a scheduled session, the client will not be charged for the session.

Refunds are not available for students who fail to turn in work or score poorly on an assignment or exam.