Editorial

Making a permanent, positive difference in the lives of children

The most important difference between KnowledgePoints^® and many other Franchise opportunities, says John Gohde, president of the Portland, Oregon based company, is that their franchisees believe they can run a successful business while also making a difference in their community. “We call that ‘doing well while doing good,’” says Gohde, “and it is what makes us unique. Our franchisees care about making money, but they also care about giving back to others.”

KnowledgePoints Learning Centers offer affordable, proven and guaranteed tutoring programs in three important areas - reading, math and study skills - for children in grades K-12. KnowledgePoints currently has 65 locations nationally, owned by 63 franchisees, and is in the process of expanding through their multi-unit, manager-run territory development program.

This opportunity is not geared for teachers, Gohde stresses. KnowledgePoints is an executive business model structured to give business-savvy professionals a chance to develop a network of centers in a protected territory. Each learning center has a manager, called a “Director of Learning” who runs the unit, not only from the educational side but also from the business side. The franchisee then manages the managers.

How KnowledgePoints Learning Centers Help Children

KnowledgePoints Learning Centers use a three-step process. The first step is to administer a series of diagnostic tests to determine the exact areas in which the student needs help. Next, an individualized action plan is designed. This “prescription” is custom-built to fit the child’s unique needs. No time is spent teaching something the child already knows.

Tutoring is delivered through weekly sessions and the student-to-instructor ratio is never more than 3-to-1.

The final step is motivation and rewards system. Throughout the program students work on materials appropriate to their skill level, giving them the opportunity to experience immediate success. This builds confidence and sets a basis for positive results. In addition, a ten minute reward time is built into every hour. Each child is rewarded with success points for mastering skills. The points can then be used at a store called Success Central or the student can spend the ten minutes playing games with other students.

“Once we start filling those gaps in a child’s education, they suddenly start to understand the way things fit together. What we do is help children master the necessary foundational skills creating an opportunity for the child to really excel,” adds Gohde. “Teachers tell us that students who once struggled in school are suddenly the ones raising their hands to answer questions, after coming to a KnowledgePoints Learning Center.”

Proven Results

“We do very concentrated work with the children and the improvements are measurable,” says Gohde.

In fact, the results of an independent study of KnowledgePoints Learning Centers nationwide found that students enrolled in the KnowledgePoints program typically see more than one year of progress in reading or math in 40 lessons. The typical reading comprehension scores, as measured by grade equivalence, improved by 1.6 years and average gains in math concepts scores were 1.3 years!

The study further determined that significant gains were achieved for children of both sexes, at all grade levels, and across all racial and ethnic groups.

“Knowing that we are making a dramatic, positive change in a child’s life is very meaningful for those of us at KnowledgePoints,” says Gohde. “It’s the heart and soul of our business. Once they experience success and can read or do math at grade level, the student gets a whole new outlook on education.”

Franchisees Wanted

There is a crucial need for affordable, effective tutoring programs for children, now more than any time in our history. Children who get behind in school often stay behind, affecting their self-esteem and interest in school. “The long-term results of constant failure can catastrophic for a child, impacting their entire future,” says Gohde.

“That’s why our franchisees are often people who have done well in business and had success in the corporate world,” says Gohde, “and now they want to give back something to their community. KnowledgePoints is a unique opportunity because a franchisee can be very successful while also helping others.”

Franchisees are awarded a large territory and then assisted with site selection and development, permits, hiring, marketing, etc. Franchisees go through a thorough training program, including pre-training, instruction at the corporate office in Portland, and post-training.

Additional training is done with the franchisee’s unit managers – the people who manage the individual learning centers. The KnowledgePoints operations staff will train these Directors of Learning to run the business, including all educational aspects so they can hire and train the tutors.

Typical franchisees begin by developing several centers simultaneously and then will add additional units at a rate about one every six months. Franchisees are required to open a minimum of five units. KnowledgePoints has a very comprehensive marketing program, called GO, to drive in a very large number of students in a short period of time.

“The bottom line is that KnowledgePoints Learning Centers help children build skills and gain the confidence to succeed. You can make money in any number of franchise opportunities,” says Gohde, “but at KnowledgePoints you can make your own financial future secure while changing the lives of children. It really is a case of having your cake and eating it, too.”