Sylvan Learning Eyes Texas as Priority Development Market to Help Children Suffering from COVID Learning Loss

Sylvan Learning, the leading provider of personal learning for students in grade K-12 with more than 750 points of presence worldwide, is targeting expansion across the Lone Star State as it grows its footprint amid an increasing demand for its academic support services after a challenging year for students across the state of Texas.

Many children have been robbed of traditional in-person schooling thanks to the COVID-19 crisis, spanning three school years. Now, even the best students are contending with massive gaps in their education, and Sylvan has the tools to address these gaps. Texas students have experienced setbacks due to COVID disruptions.

In October 2020, the Texas Tribune reported on “alarming failure rates” in Texas public schools, with superintendents citing that “virtual instruction simply is not working for thousands of students across the state.” 2020’s report cards from the first weeks of the school year show more students than the year prior failing at least one class, with students turning in assignments late (if at all), skipping virtual school and falling behind on reading.

Parents reported being exhausted from providing home schooling in addition to holding their own jobs. And those children without any parent or guardian support are struggling to keep track of their daily workload with limited outside help.

Texas expansion plans

CEO of Sylvan Learning John McAuliffe understands that the need for providing supplemental learning resources to children is an industry that is only growing, and due to the pandemic, that need has been perpetuated in certain state’s communities — most recently, Texas.

“Now more than ever communities where we have opened such as Austin, Lakeway and Georgetown, Texas, need us,” said McAuliffe. “Children have fallen behind since the onset of the pandemic, having been forced into a new way of learning — and depending on where they live, they may or may not have received adequate support. The fact of the matter is, Sylvan Centers are expanding faster than ever to meet the needs of our children — because this need isn’t going away. We want to reach every community and give every child the confidence to learn the best they can.”

Even amid the pandemic, the brand still managed to open 29 brick and mortar locations and 12 virtual centers in 2021. Plus, the brand signed for 45 new locations and welcomed 108 franchisees to the system since the start of the pandemic. Now, at the end of 2021, it has become clear that the virus’s impact on schools, families and children isn’t going anywhere soon, and the brand projects to open significantly more new centers in 2022.

New franchisees

Among Sylvan’s newest Texas-based franchisees is Young Kim. Kim wanted to impact a brighter future in her community via personalized learning. She invested in two Sylvan Learning centers with one in Lakeway and one in Georgetown.

Kim, a former daycare worker and housewife who “spent a lot of time teaching kids and herself,” understands the importance of educational development and expressed her desire to continue on that path.

“Education is the best way that I believe I can help children reach their full potential, and Sylvan already has things in place to help start that process,” said Kim. “There is a large need for Sylvan in Lakeway because there are a lot of young families with children, and oftentimes the parents are juggling full schedules, which makes it difficult to sit with their children for one-on-one tutoring. A Sylvan Learning center will give parents an opportunity to send their children to a place where they can get that extra education.”

Israel Cordero, a career educator of 25 years, opened his first Sylvan Learning in Dallas virtually on September 7th, and plans to open a physical location early next year.

Cordero formerly worked as the CEO and superintendent of an in-district charter school in San Antonio called the Brentwood STEAM School of Innovation in partnership with Edgewood ISD.

As an educator, he already knew what the Sylvan system was capable of, having seen the impact of students having benefited from its tutoring services.

“I learned that the Sylvan franchise is capable of supporting the families or districts because the franchise’s reach has close to 1,000 tutors, and that was extremely interesting to me,” said Cordero. “I know the Dallas-Fort Worth area really well, and this location is a great opportunity to service families and impact the community.”

Jenny Nelson is another educator who brought a Sylvan to the community of El Campo, Texas, in 2021. This education expert with over 20 years of experience recognized the need for supplemental education and is now pursuing franchise ownership with Sylvan after noticing many kids need additional help in traditional academic coursework and with TSI, ACT and SAT prep.

“Before COVID, I saw the need, but now we need it even more,” said Nelson. “I know people that drive hours to bring their children to the nearest Sylvan Learning. There are no tutoring or educational franchise offerings within an hour of our area. It really just came down to there being a need in our community for Sylvan Learning to help students of all age levels receive the help they need.”

In addition to the Lakeway, Georgetown, Dallas and El Campo locations, Sylvan also saw openings this year in Cinco Ranch/Fulshear and Willow Park. The franchise system also transferred the ownership of locations in Waco, Coppell, Frisco, Flower Mound, Allen, Carrollton, Brownsville, McAllen, TX, North Austin, South Austin, Round Rock, Kyle and Killeen.

Future growth

With its eyes on adding locations in 70 additional markets across Texas, the industry-leading education franchise is seeking franchise partners to provide a much-needed service as students struggle to get caught up and reach their full potential.

“Our franchisees are able to make a difference in their community by bringing Sylvan Learning to the families of these Texas cities,” said McAuliffe. “At a time when demand for our services is unprecedented, Sylvan Learning’s system is stronger, more nimble and more united than ever.

We are excited to find new partners to bring Sylvan Learning to students who need help the most across Texas.”

With more than 40 years of experience and more than 750 points of presence throughout North America, Sylvan Learning is the leading provider of personal learning for students in grades K-12. Sylvan is transforming how students learn, inspiring them to succeed in school and in life. Sylvan’s proven tutoring approach blends amazing teachers with SylvanSync™ technology on the iPad® for an engaging learning experience.

Sylvan also leads the way with Sylvan EDGE — STEM and accelerated courses and Sylvan Prep — college and test prep courses. Sylvan supports families through every stage of the academic journey. Sylvan is a wholly owned subsidiary of Franchise Group, Inc.