The pitch:
Mathnasium is a math-learning center where we assess each child’s math abilities, prepare or create an individualized learning plan and then work individually with that child to catch up, keep up or get ahead in math.
Years in business:
Opened East Providence location in January 2014, Cranston location in September 2014.
Employees:
15 instructors in two locations.
Students:
Approximately 100.
Cost of enrollment:
$200-$300.
Cost to open:
$40,000 at signing, plus additional fees (according to Mathnasium website).
Before opening Mathnasium:
“I had a 30-year career in finance. I worked for companies that included First Data, Motorola and Hasbro.”
Reason for opening:
“I was ready to do something different, and I really wanted to be my own boss. I was a math geek as a kid. I really loved math and excelled in it. I also felt that there was a need for a business like this in Rhode Island, so it seemed like the perfect opportunity for me and I am having a great deal of fun.”
‘Throughout the U.S., children are not achieving and learning math the way we would like them to. We are falling behind relative to other countries.’
‘We see the most students from grades 3-8, but we will work with a kindergartener or first grader into adulthood. We have helped some adults prepare for exams that had math sections on them. [Our oldest student was] about 50 years old, he was working towards a specific licensing program in his field.’
‘Since Mathnasium is a franchise business with significant resources, we have this whole online, computer-based system that analyzes what the student missed [on oral and written tests], then creates a learning plan based on the results of the assessment.’
