By KATIE WISELY
WISH-TV | wishtv.com
A second wave of retired Indiana teaches are back to work. They are volunteering their time to help students with homework challenges over the phone. It’s part of the Indiana Retired Teachers Association program “Call & Learn.”
It’s one-on-one help. More than 60 percent of Indiana’s 1 million students have limited or no access to online learning, which prompted retired teachers to create this telephone-based resource for homework help.
Hundreds of education volunteers will service the hotline from the comfort of their own homes. Middle and high school students are matched with educators with a background in math, science, language arts and social studies. Elementary students are paired with general education elementary teachers.
Retired teachers from the American Federation of Teachers and the Indiana State Teachers Association will provide the help.
To get help, call 877-407-8839. The hotline is open from 1 to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday. The program is anonymous and also records the calls, which protects both the students and educators.
Since the closing of schools in March, the program has helped more than 1,000 students and provided 3,500 hours of assistance.
Any retired teacher who wants to volunteer can contact the Indiana Retired Teachers Association at teacherhelp@retiredteachers.org or by calling 888-454-9333.