Where did the name Straight “A” come from? Well, there are a couple of factors.
In 2007, Mr. A founded Straight “A” Academy as a tutoring center. Since that time, he started a volunteer student tutoring program to work with underserved youth, launched a cutting-edge individualized private school, received a commendation from the Mayor of Manchester, served as an education consultant to NH gubernatorial candidates and developed the most successful test prep training program in the country. Mr. A has become “America’s Favorite Test Prep Teacher”!
When papa Alvarado emigrated to the U.S. at age 21, he didn’t speak a word of English, but he was a quick study. Ask the Alvarado children and they’ll tell you how smart their parents were, even though they didn’t earn a college degree. And obviously, their parents placed a high value on education. The rule in the Alvarado house was, “School First, Music Second, and Sports Third.” Some of mama Alvarado’s most prized photos were of her children dressed in their sports uniforms, practicing their musical instruments before their games or they weren’t allowed to play!
Education is more an art than a science. Each child is either a masterpiece in the making or a mere outline of what might have been.” Felix Alvarado, Jr. (Mr. “A”)
Felix Alvarado, Jr., his older brother and younger sister are first-generation college graduates. All 3 siblings graduated Valedictorian of their respective high-school classes. Son of a Mexican immigrant and an American mother, Felix is bi-lingual, having studied in Spain as part of his college education at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. With over 34 years as a professional educator, Mr. Alvarado has dedicated his career to working directly with children. Whether in the classroom or through one of his innovative initiatives, Mr. “A” has always endeavored to bring the best instruction, both in the classroom and through creative outside-of-school opportunities, to the most children possible, even when the children’s families cannot afford the training.
Here are just a few of the the outside-the-box-thinking programs that Mr. Alvarado has conceived:
And he has done it all while raising 5 children of his own (now all adults).
He has received endorsements (by virtue of these people sending their children to him for training) from Commissioner of Education, Superintendents of Schools, Head of Guidance Departments, and other teachers. He has served as an education consultant for gubernatorial campaigns and for average, every- day parents. Despite all of the accolades he has received, what Mr. “A” has always valued most as an educator is his connection with his students. They have given the highest rating in online rate-my-teacher sites, because they know he truly cares about them. In fact, it was his students who affectionately gave him his two monikers: don Felix and Mr. “A”. Due to his dedication to his profession and to his students, over the past decade, Mr. “A” has become known as the #1 Test Prep Coach in New England and one of America’s most beloved teachers
I'm your Team Bio section. Click to edit and tell your visitors more about this tutor. What did they study in school? What subjects do they specialize in? Do they have any special qualifications? A rising star in the Straight "A" Family, Stephen received a classical Liberal Arts training at Thomas Moore College. He has 3 years of classroom teaching experience and has trained directly under Mr. "A" with SAT Preparation. He is that rare tutor who can help students with most subjects through high school. Mr. Lajoie is dedicated to his students, dedicated to his profession and dedicated becoming the next Mr. “A”.
Mr. “A”s surname – Alvarado – both begins with an A and has three consecutive vowels that are a’s. Most non-Spanish speakers over the years have misspelled his last name as either “Alverado” or “Alvardo”. To clarify, he would tell them, “straight A’s.”
"The Straight “A” Elite Test Prep guarantees an increase of at least 100 points (if you do the assignments). While my scores improved by more than 100 points per section, 330 increase overall!”
"Mr. A was extraordinarily flexible and worked around our daughter’s busy athletic schedule to set up weekly training sessions. He delivered great results. Erika increased her scores in every ACT category. No need to super-score!”
"The scores came in today and wow! I received a 660 on critical reading, 650 on math, and 580 on writing! Totaling a 1890. I’m extremely pleased with these scores compared to my last scores (Reading – 460, Math – 570, Writing – 490) all of them saw a significant increase! 200 point difference in reading alone! This is great. Thanks again!
“I took the SAT in January, didn’t do so well. Then I to the Straight “A” Elite Test Prep course leading up to the March SAT Test. My overall scores jumped 290 points! Now I’m eligible for admission into every college I was interested in, and I’m being offered more scholarship money, too! Thanks Mr. A!”
"My first SAT scores weren’t bad, but I wanted to improve. So, I took a SAT Prep course at a local college. My second SAT scores actually fell by 20 points. Then I took the Straight “A” Elite Test Prep Course. My third and final SAT scores improved by 140 points. I would have been happy with a 50 point increase, but I think the individualized attention with a small class really helped put me over the top.
“As a high school student, naturally, one of the most stressful components of the college application process is the SAT. I acquired the suggested textbooks and handouts in order to prepare for the exam, though I found that the sample passages, corresponding questions, and associated problems were simply not enough to attain the score I was hoping to receive. I sought after a more personal, fine-tuned method of preparation. Thus, through word of mouth, I contacted Mr. “A” to find out more about his program and teaching style. After some thought, I decided to give it a try.Looking back, I can confidently say that I owe a significant amount of gratitude to Mr. “A”, as it is safe to say that my success is largely attributed to my time with him. From easy scheduling fit to the student’s available time outside of school, a personable attitude and method of communication and, most importantly, a practiced and proven teaching strategy, Mr. “A” lowers the looming pressures of academic performance and instills a sense of confidence and preparedness for not only the SAT, but the college application process as a whole. I would recommend Mr. “A” to any student looking to either improve a previous score, or perform most closely to their greatest potential the first time taking the SAT.”
"Dear Mr A,
How are you doing? Hope everything is alright with you and your family. We are often remembering those good summer times in Straight A Academy. It gave us a lot! I thought you would be glad to know that I have increased my score by 270 points to 1760. My essay got 10. I was also doing English Proficiency Test IELTS needed for universities. I got 8 out of 9 (9 is the level of native speaker and 7 is usually required for all top universities). All the SAT prep we did in the summer helped me a lot when I was doing this test! Today I have received my first offer from Northeastern University. Although I have applied to many other universities, I think that I would accept this offer. Still waiting for a response from other universities though. Thank you for your help and time spent with us. We really appreciate this!"
"Math – 700 ; Reading – 700 ; Writing – 690 94/95 percentile in all !!! It was an increase of 60 pts in math, 40 pts in reading and 70 pts in writing. We are very pleased. She didn’t have much time between school and extracurricular obligations to put into SAT studying, but she obviously got a lot out of your classes and assignments."
"Mr. A was extraordinarily flexible and worked around our daughter’s busy athletic schedule to set up weekly training sessions. He delivered great results. Erika increased her scores in every ACT category. No need to super-score!” “I wanted to follow-up to let you know what a great job Jesse’s tutor did. Since meeting last week, Jesse has had two math quizzes and earned 100 on one and 95 on the other. He is thrilled, as am I, and his confidence is back!”
“Espero que este email te encuentre muy bien. Mil gracias por darle atencion a mi hija Savannah, ella esta muy contenta contigo.”
“My daughter went to Mr. A after he came highly recommended by a friend and I have to say he is every bit as he was recommended to be. I spent a decent amount of time with Mr. A understanding his method of teaching and his strategy for success and I can unequivocally state that all of his methods are effective and efficient. My daughter was averaging around 26 in practice tests prior to meeting Mr. A and after her sessions with him ended up getting a 31 in her first try of the ACT. It is not the score that mattered for me as much as I saw the level of confidence and poise that my daughter had as she neared the exams. Mr. A is truly a remarkable teacher and I wholly agree that he is the BEST test prep coach in NE. I would recommend Mr. A to my friends without any hesitation or reservation as he is truly a “Straight A”. Thanks Mr. A.”
“Our daughter has struggled in math both her freshman and sophomore years in high school, never getting better than a C in level 3 classes. This school year we turned to Straight “A” for private tutoring after trying other services with no improvement. Our daughter’s grades have steadily improved this year and she now holds a solid B in level 3 Algebra II. Aimee has done a wonderful job with helping our daughter grasp the fundamentals and improve her comprehension of the one area she has always struggled in. Thank you to all at Straight “A”!!
"Straight “A” Academy has provided tutoring for my daughter which is individualized, clear and concise in an easy to learn format. Her tutor challenges my daughter to think abstractly and encourages self-expression in a fun, caring atmosphere. The sessions are customized for what is needed at the time and promote both self-esteem and self-direction. Enrolling my daughter in Straight “A” Academy was the best decision for her and her success. My faith extends to her enrolling in Straight “A” Academy on a full-time basis in the fall for her success as a student and a person.”
"Our introduction to Straight A took place last fall when our son (Brendan) received a “C” in his honors Biology class. This was the first “C” he ever earned and it served as a wake up call for me, my husband and especially Brendan. This was also the first time I ever heard him say he “hated school!” It was clear he was feeling discouraged and defeated and we needed to do something to get him back on solid ground academically . I called Straight A Academy and was thrilled to find out the business was operated by Felix Alvarado – he is the absolute BEST! If every teacher had Felix’s ability to reach students and desire to see them succeed our kids would all be doing great! Anyway, by the next quarter, Brendan had brought his grade up to an “A-.” Not only was he thrilled with his grade, he was actually beginning to rediscover his love for science and once again feeling confident about his learning abilities. It was clear that time at Straight A Academy was not about simply memorizing something for the test, it’s about making sure the student really grasps it. I apologize for rambling! In a nut shell, I HIGHLY recommend Straight A Academy! And I fully intend to take advantage of Straight A’s SAT services for Brendan when the time is right!”
P.S. “Brendan’s SAT scores just came in; we are so thrilled! He qualified for merit scholarships!!!”
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