Minds Matter Denver worked with Denver Test Prep to develop their own in-house test prep program. Hear what they had to say about their experience working with Denver Test Prep below.

“I worked with Adam Silver through our organizational partnership between Denver Test Prep (DTP) and Minds Matter Denver (MMD). Our mission is to transform the lives of accomplished high school students from low-income families by broadening their dreams and preparing them for success in college and beyond. I have directed standardized test preparation for the last two years for MMD. For many MMD students, standardized testing is a major barrier to admission to selective colleges; they have the grades, the maturity, and the extracurriculars, but some schools need to see a top score or all those other things don’t count. We are in the process of improving our SAT preparation regimen to ensure that our students have access to the schools they aim for, just like other students who don’t have the same barriers to overcome.

That’s where Adam comes in. I have a lot of experience with test preparation, having worked for Kaplan and NextStep before running my own small business. But I have never made a plan to improve a group of students’ scores systematically. While I had ideas on how to do this, bringing on DTP helped our organization make more comprehensive and sustainable plans than what I could have done alone. It paved a way forward that we plan to use for years to come.

First, DTP is committed to serving first generation and low-income students. This was reflected in their consideration of our program. When we’re doing SAT preparation, I can’t count on having a computer for every student. I can’t even count on Internet access. Their plan took into consideration the unreliability of technology in our program. Furthermore, DTP understood our need to prepare a range of students, from top 10 percentile scorers to students struggling with fundamentals. Many test prep courses are geared toward students already scoring well above average, further perpetuating inequities in education and college admissions.

Next, DTP knows high school standardized tests; it’s what they do. While I am pretty well-versed in the resources available, they had numerous suggestions that I didn’t know about, like syncing College Board and Khan Academy accounts to create an automated, individualized plan of study. Since we don’t have the tutors available for individualized instruction, this allows us to spend more time with the material rather than planning study programs. DTP knew all the available paper books and online options. They helped us find a simple, inexpensive option for test prep.

Finally, DTP was incredibly easy to work with. There is no bureaucracy and I worked directly with Adam on MMD’s plan, completing the work we set out to do. He listened to our scheduling needs, financial resources, and available expertise, crafting a very specific plan to help our students succeed. For instance, we now have an easy-to-use shared tool to collect scores from a variety of sources and translate those into goal scores and schools. In addition, they provided us with a schedule. They understood that we are primarily a mentoring program that also provides SAT preparation and not the other way around, letting us maintain our distinctive strengths while improving on our opportunity areas.

In conclusion, I highly recommend Denver Test Prep for individual and group test prep in addition to institutional plans to improve test preparation. It is incredibly gratifying to see individual scores rise, but far more exciting to see entire classes improve their scores dramatically. I know now that, even after I have left MMD, our students will have the opportunity to attend the colleges of their choices.”

Sincerely,
JK Costello, MD, MPH

Denver Test Prep helps Impact360 students to prepare for standardized tests through 1-on-1 tutoring and group programs. We have helped students to prepare for the ACT, SAT, and private high school admissions exams, including the SSAT. Hear what they have to say about the partnership:

“Impact360 has benefited greatly from our partnership with Denver Test Prep. Impact360 participants have worked with DTP staff in both one-on-one and group settings to prepare for both high school and college entrance exams. Whether students were working to prepare for the tests or to raise their scores on a retake, DTP staff’s expertise has been invaluable in our students’ success.”

Denver Test Prep offers 1-on-1 private tutoring services and small group classes to Elite Speed student-athletes. Hear what Elite Speed co-founder Nick Vinson has to say about the partnership:

“This is the company we recommend to all of our athletes. They have helped our athletes jump on the ACT by an average of 5 points which is unreal. They’ve helped us open more doors to our athletes scholarship wise and we will continue to recommend their services.”

Denver Test Prep provided small group ACT courses and individualized tutoring to all College Track juniors. The 9-month program began in September and concluded after the official state-wide ACT held in April. In the most recent year of the program, the 50+ students participating in the College Track program achieved a median increase of 4 points on their ACT composite score. Read testimony from College Track below:

“The skilled tutors at Denver Test Prep are amazing! They have helped support our students at College Track in Aurora to achieve substantial increases in their ACT scores. During their Junior year at College Track, our students who worked with Denver Test Prep tutors saw their scores jump by an average of 4 points! These results are fantastic, and we couldn’t be happier. Moreover, the staff of Denver Test Prep are always courteous, professional, and willing to be flexible with what we need at a great price. I can’t recommend them highly enough.”

In the fall of 2014, Denver Test Prep provided ACT prep training to I Have A Dream staff members that ran their in-house ACT prep program. The program was further supported in the spring of 2015 with a limited number of targeted ACT prep sessions delivered by Denver Test Prep staff to help supplement the in-house test prep program. Hear testimony from the partnership:

“I am from a nonprofit that serves under-resourced youth in Boulder County. Denver test prep has been very accommodating and flexible with our needs. They have been a great resource for our students as well. The students’ feedback of their ACT sessions were very positive and our instructor, Andrew, really concentrated on the tips that our students would benefit most from. I would definitely recommend them as a very supportive and beneficial resource for your test prep needs!”