Master Shipbuilder Cynthia Fox (E70) will take away many wonderful memories of her 40-year career when she retires from Newport News Shipbuilding this month, but a special chapter of her shipyard life is set apart from the business of aircraft carriers and submarines.
Once a week for the past 20 years, Fox has served as a tutor and mentor of young students at Newsome Park Elementary School through the NNS TATOO program, which stands for Taking Action To Overcome Obstacles.
Fox coordinates the program with Newsome Park, helping third-, fourth- and fifth-graders improve their math skills with an eye toward passing the Standards of Learning.
Spending an hour with children once week can make a world of difference, both academically and personally.
“It blesses me to see the children having that one-on-one time with someone,” Fox said. “Some of them don’t get that attention at home, and they look forward to the tutors coming.”
The program is among the shipyard’s pre-K and K-12 initiatives under SEEKnns, which serves thousands of students, educators and parents. Fox began coordinating the TATOO program after the previous coordinator, a friend of hers, had step away due to job requirements. Fox took over the reins and never looked back.
Being a tutor requires no special academic skills, she said. The school provides all the necessary materials. Volunteers must commit one hour per week to the student. Want to be a volunteer? All you need is dedication, flexibility, patience and the desire to see children learn.
“We’re making a difference,” Fox said. “The more you can get them to enjoy learning, the more successful they will be. We’re there to help these children have a hunger for learning.”
Besides tutoring in math, being a mentor is also important. “You get to talk to the students about what they want to be when they grow up,” she said. “We tell them what we do at the shipyard.”
Fox says she occasionally meets a previous student she tutored, and it’s a joy to be recognized.
“I have seen some of the kids out in public, and they remember me,” she said. “They’ll see me in the store or somewhere, and say, ‘mom, that’s the TATOO lady.’”
Coordinators play a vital role in the TATOO program. Marcus Jackson (O05) serves as a coordinator for the program at Flora B. Crittenden Middle School, and Denise Martin (E85) played a vital role as a coordinator earlier in the TATOO program.
To learn more about the TATOO program or other SEEKnns initiatives, contact Sheryce Moore, who also serves as coordinator for the Discovery STEM Academy, via email.
