Mother and daughter team Suzanne and Morgan Flottmeier opened the doors to the newest Sylvan Learning Center franchise location in Albertville on Aug. 21. Sylvan Learning offers K-12 supplemental education.
“We both live pretty close by this area, relatively speaking, and we just knew that it was a growing area. There was a lot of interest here, a lot of families here, a lot of schools here. So it just seemed like a really good fit as an up-and-coming area with a lot of parents and families that we would be able to serve,” Morgan Flottmeier said.
Almost a year ago, Maple Grove resident Suzanne Flottmeier and her daughter Morgan Flottmeier of Champlin, had hoped to break ground during the fall of 2022 on a different Albertville location. This location turned out not to be the right fit for them, but a new opportunity came their way.
The Albertville location is located at 5585 La Centre Ave., anchored by Coborns Grocery Store. After graduating from the University of Dallas, Morgan Flottmeier moved to Delaware where she began working at a Sylvan Learning Center as a tutor.
It wasn’t long before she was promoted to the center director role. When Morgan Flottmeier lived in Delaware, she would call her mother Suzanne Flottmeier and talk to her about her
day and her job.
“It was hard for her to be so far away and I had devoted my adult life to being a stay-at-home mom, raising our two children, my husband’s and my two children.” Suzanne Flottmeier continued, “As she spoke, it just inspired me, I was at a point in my life where my children were grown and I was looking for something to do. I love children, so this just seemed like such a good meld of interests and desires, and there’s no one I’d rather work with than my daughter.”
Sylvan has programs in reading, math, writing and study skills. Sylvan also offers SAT and ACT preparation and homework support. Students can bring in assignments from the school they attend, and receive guidance.
The Albertville Sylvan Learning Center location has office hours from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday, if parents have questions or would like to schedule an appointment. Instructional hours for students are after school from 3:30-7:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday.
They also offer tutoring services on Saturdays from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., and office hours from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The weekend option can be helpful for parents who work during the week and children who have extracurricular activities after school.
Since the center just opened on Aug. 21, they haven’t been able to offer extended hours during the summertime yet, but they hope to be able to in 2024. This means that in the summer, students will be able to come to Sylvan Learning Center in the morning, since they don’t have school in the summer.
Morgan Flottmeier has a lot of tutoring experience.
“One student that I had, he improved his SAT scores about 400 points in just a few months. I had a third-grade student who was having trouble with reading, and a couple months in with Sylvan, he was writing a letter to his grandparents and reading it out loud to his family,” Morgan Flottmeier said.
Right now, since the center hasn’t been open for long, Morgan Flottmeier is the center’s tutor. As they expand in the future, they plan to hire more tutors.
“We’re just trying to get out and learn the area and meet the people in our community and our neighbors. We don’t just want to be a business, we want to be a family helping families and we want to be an integrative part of this neighborhood. So we’re looking to set down roots, meet people and become a part of the fabric that makes up the Albertville, St. Michael area,” Suzanne Flottmeier said.