Covid-19 Adaptations
Welcome Breakthrough Families!
We would like to take a moment to express gratitude to our families for their patience, continued support, and understanding during these difficult times. In response to our current pandemic climate, we have made many adaptations to our learning center as we reach closer to reopening. Health and safety standards is our number one priority for our community. Due to the novel Covid-19 and its unpredictable nature, we now offer distance learning for school year sessions through Zoom and Google Meets. Staying current and close to news and updates is very important to us. So when the state of California permits and stability with the numbers, we will reopen for Spring Semester with adapted social distancing measures as outlined by the CDC. We welcome all to take a look at the adjustments we have made at Breakthrough and please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions or concerns.
Breakthrough Registration School Year 2020-2021
Currently Operating Distance Learning Through Zoom And Google Meets
Hybrid Classes (In Person and Distance Learning) TBD
4 Month Registration: Register for 4 Months For Promotional Rate + Free BLC Workshop
What to Expect?
Developed from a home setting in the community of Yorba Linda, we have earned our reputation in being effective, efficient, and empowering teachers through the support of parents, teachers, students, along with positive test and teaching results. As we continue to expand our knowledge in the research of learning dynamics along with being involved in the creation of the Common Core Learning that is being implemented in California, we are RAISING THE BAR for tutoring. We would like to welcome all families to Breakthrough Learning Center, where they will find high quality teachers who will provide a high standard of learning.
At Breakthrough we have one goal
To bring our students to their greatest potential. We are inspired to create meaning and true inspiration in how students engage and perceive their education along with their future. Our environment is built to create a hard working, self disciplined, motivational, and individualized study program where students’ arts and technical skills are utilized for development.
Breakthrough utilizes the experience of diverse teaching environments and the knowledge gained through the study of psychology to find the best individualized study program for your child. We understand there are many different learning styles and each student is different. Our goal is to find the best style of learning, comprehending, retaining, and analyzing information for each student. Through diverse resources, including the integration of technological resources, we will find the best way to study with your child.
We want your child to enjoy education and at the same time reach their highest potential. With the integration of Common Core projects in our individualized study programs, we will develop an in depth knowledge of the topic, solid study skills, strong self discipline, and confidence that will be used throughout each student’s life. We believe education is an important foundation, so we want to empower each student in their educational experience.
Breakthrough Learning Center works with both parents and teachers in order to get each student to reach their maximum potential. We believe in a strong support system that will allow each student to grow. We work off the clock hours because we truly care about our students reaching their goals.
Our Team
What we want is to see the child in pursuit of knowledge, and not knowledge in pursuit of the child
Jennifer Dinh-Avila
Executive Director
Jennifer is our BLC Executive Director who has experience with:
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M.A. Psychology Emphasis on Marriage and Family Therapy from Chapman University
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Over 12 years of experience in various environments like classrooms, in-house, and various learning academies.
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Tutors all subjects: Mathematics, Language Arts, Literature Analysis, and Standardized Test Prep.
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Specializes in psychological learning tools to aid students in school content, study habits, communication patterns, time management, and building confidence.
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Over 9 years experience in tutoring Fullerton, Brea, Orange, Anaheim, Anaheim Hills, Riverside, and Placentia-Yorba Linda School Districts.
Ivan Avila
Associate Director
Ivan is our BLC Education Analyst/Coordinator who is highly versed in:
- M.A. Education, UCR Alum
- Math Credential
- NVHS Algebra & Geometry Teacher from Alvord Unified School District in Riverside, CA.
- NVHS Over 8 years Private Basketball Coach at all levels ( Freshman to Varsity)
- Over 4 years Experience in Common Core training and design of assessment along with performance tasks.
- Over 12 Years Experience in CA School District.
- Over 11 years experience in tutoring Fullerton, Brea, Orange, Anaheim, Anaheim Hills, Riverside, and Placentia-Yorba Linda School Districts.
diversity | family | learning
Meet Jennifer and Ivan Avila of Breakthrough Learning Center in Yorba Linda
LOCAL STORIES
CAPTURED BEHIND THE CAMERA
Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer and Ivan Avila.
Jennifer and Ivan, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Breakthrough Learning Center started in 2009, originally named Gestalt Tutoring Services, in a home setting in the neighborhoods of Yorba Linda. When we first started off, I just started my Master’s Program at Chapman University. I was studying Psychology with an emphasis on Marriage and Family Therapy to pursue my dreams of becoming a psychologist. My husband was working at Alvord Unified School District as a high school math teacher and basketball coach. Naturally, we love working with people and helping them find solutions to anything- whether it be school, life, or on the courts. In the past, I worked at many tutoring centers, but there wasn’t any center that shared the same strong passion in working with kids and aiding in their growth as I had. My husband and I wanted to create something that could help these kids grow to their fullest potential along with mentoring them through life’s challenges as they go through important stages of their life. We decided to start tutoring kids around the neighborhood of Yorba Linda, which was where we currently resided. We went to Ikea, bought 4 desks and 4 chairs, and placed it into our home to create a classroom setup. We started off with two students, a neighbor and my brother. This was our start and we were ready for the hard work.
About three years later, I completed my Master’s program and we had to make one of the biggest decisions in our lives. My time was limited so I had to decide whether I wanted to pursue working in the psychology field (a deep passion that I have) or actually invest in a learning center. In my heart, there was something telling me that I needed to stick with these students who I saw almost everyday, now going into four years of knowing them and seeing them grow through these years. I couldn’t leave them hanging as I wanted to help them pursue their dreams and live a life without limitations.
Nervous and excited, we decided to take the risk. We took that chance of opening up a learning center to see where it would go. We told ourselves that if we help these kids reach their fullest potential and reach their dreams, that was all the success in the world for us. We opened a learning center in Yorba Linda, within a mile from our home setting. Two years later, we opened another set of classrooms in a different suite due to word of mouth and the demands for students who wanted to be part of this Breakthrough Family we created.
This past year was one of the most emotional and hardest years as the students we started off with at Gestalt Tutoring Services (6 + more years) were now graduating and leaving off to college to begin this limitless life they worked hard for. These students became my own brothers and sisters as we saw each other go through both good times and bad times. We experienced so many important life moments together that it would be hard not to call them my family. They saw us from our engagement, to our wedding, to finishing my graduate program, to building the learning center and seeing the growth, to knowing my own family members and my dogs, to seeing our first home. It has been such a beautiful, amazing, and inspirational walk in life to go through. Everyday ,we are amazed by these students and truly are inspired to keep reaching out to as many students as we can.
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Testimonials
Sofia K.
“I went to Gestalt Tutoring (Original Name of Breakthrough Learning Center) for all four years of high school; and during those four years, I not only expanded my quantitative knowledge, but also my qualitative ability. Through math tutoring for geometry to Trigonometry, I graduated high school with a stellar GPA and excellent grades in math. After four years of PSAT and SAT tutoring, my SAT scores were higher than my expectations and in fact, higher than many students around. I applied to nine colleges, including UC’s and Claremont Colleges, and I got into all nine schools. I would allude that success to my experience with Gestalt Tutoring. The positive results and incessant encouragement showed me that I can achieve anything. I was given opportunity to succeed and recognition when I succeeded, something that I would not have gotten if I relied on my school and definitely something that I probably would not get if I did tutoring in a large, group setting. I am completely satisfied with my experience at Gestalt and I would not be where I am today without my foundation that was built by Ms. Jen, Mr. Avila, and myself.”
A. Patel
“I have been a student at BLC since 5th grade and I am now going into my junior year of high school. Mrs. Jen and Mr. Avila have been there for me through everything and are always there to offer me advice and guidance through all of my decisions whether it is academic or not. Mrs. Jen, Mr. Avila, and all the other tutors have created an amazing tutoring center that makes me and other students feel like family and will help us with our every need.
Even in the time of COVID-19, which was stressful as is, they never failed to give us the support we needed through Zoom sessions to get through distance learning. Even after the Zoom sessions, the instructors always responded to my emails promptly throughout the week if I had any questions on any of my homework at home. The instructors at BLC truly care about how their student is doing individually and will do everything to make sure that they are getting the proper support they need. There is truly no other tutoring center that is comparable to BLC because they treat not only their students, but the parents as family as well.”
D. Kim
“I have been attending Gestalt Tutoring, since I was in the middle of third grade and now I am a freshman in high school. When I first attended Gestalt, it was a small tutoring center located at Mrs. Jen’s house. As a young and naive kid, I hated anything related to school work. When my mom told me I had to go to a tutoring establishment, I was infuriated at the fact that I had to put more time into learning. However, over the years I have realized that Gestalt was more than just a tutoring center. It was a place where students can go and learn in a comfortable environment, and establish new relationships with other students. I have stayed numerous hours at Gestalt to study for tests. I can recall many days in which I have stayed long hours studying for tests, and with their help I received an “A.” Mrs. Jen and Mr. Avila are always there for any problems I have faced. I consider both of them as my second family. I can go to Mrs. Jen with any problems I face in my school work as well as my social life. She has helped me through rigorous academic courses, providing multiple practice test, as well as her own knowledge. Mr. Avila has been a major role model to me, and the first day that I met Mr. Avila we had an instant connection. We were both athletes and loved to play sports. Mr. Avila has been my main motivation in my school work and sports. His dedication to his work and his compassion to his students has inspired me. They both have been very important figures in my life, and they have sacrificed their time in making sure that I will be successful. I will always view Gestalt as my second home, because without the support from Mrs. Jen and Mr. Avila I would not be the person I am today.”
