Why Franchisees Love Working With Sylvan Learning

When Kristen Fisher began working at Sylvan Learning as an instructor in 1999, she was still teaching full-time at a school in her local community. After years of seeing positive results for the students she worked with at Sylvan’s Learning, she left the school atmosphere to work full-time with the franchise brand, eventually becoming the owner of the Kansas City location where she had been working. Now, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Fisher is seeing even more than before just how valuable the 750-unit franchise’s services truly can be to both parents and their children.

“Parents are really appreciating our services,” said Fisher. “It’s a matter of filling in the gaps where students aren’t getting as much attention now with most schools providing classwork online.”

2020 has been a critical year for Sylvan as a whole. As an educational resource for families across the country, Sylvan has been helping children of all ages achieve their educational goals since 1979. Now, as COVID-19 has disrupted the school year, families are turning to Sylvan Learning more and more to help their children stay engaged during these difficult times. Franchisees within the education brand’s network are seeing an uptick in students as old as high school-age needing help. Fisher says Sylvan’s services are making it possible for these students to wrap their head around increasingly difficult subjects.

“Over the past few weeks we’ve had a run of high school math kids who normally wouldn’t need math tutoring,” said Fisher. “Now they’re calling us as they're trying to learn difficult upper level math through Zoom calls. We’re well equipped to aid them in their studies during this unprecedented time.”

Judy Cornell, owner and center director of the O’Fallon, Illinois Sylvan location, said her center has been able to accommodate and help so many students throughout the pandemic in a truly impactful way. One of the mothers Cornell works with is currently undergoing cancer treatments. During what is already a very difficult time for their family, her third grade son was having trouble focusing in his e-learning classes. Cornell said that after day one at Sylvan, the young learner’s engagement with schoolwork turned the tide.

“He was not a happy camper when we first met him, but by noon, he loved being here,” said Cornell. “He skipped right out the door at the end of his first day. He’s been doing so well here and we’ve made a great connection with the kiddo. It warms my heart that their family feels comfortable bringing him here, even during the pandemic.”

Cornell said Sylvan’s constant support during the COVID-19 crisis has gone above and beyond expectations. Leadership worked diligently to get the brand’s online platform up and running when the pandemic hit, and there have been multiple, meaningful updates to its software as Sylvan continues to adapt to the ‘new normal.’ The brand’s corporate team also assisted with PPP loan applications, and rolled out cleaning and sanitization protocols to help guide franchisees as they reopened their locations post-shutdown. The corporate team’s ability to foster such a supportive, innovative atmosphere is one of the reasons she loves working with the franchise.

“They’ve done tons of things to ensure that franchisees are equipped for the environment we’re living in during the pandemic,” said Cornell. “They have worked pretty tirelessly to continue our success as business owners. I keep remembering that leadership too is working from home; they’re functioning under the same reality that franchisees are in and it's clear from their attention to detail that they really want to keep everyone motivated and engaged.” 

Sylvan CEO John McAuliffe said their franchisees are always top of mind. As leadership continues to grow and develop their business model and offerings in the pandemic, the future of each location and the students they reach are the driving force behind the decisions they make. 

"At Sylvan, our franchisees love being a member of their community that is truly making a difference in the lives of children,” said McAuliffe. “This year more than ever, in our 40-plus years of history, we are needed by parents across America. Through our service offerings that include virtual sessions and in-person, small-group School Support, we are able to not only help the communities where our franchisees live and work, but to also ensure our franchisees are seeing business to help keep their locations successful. There has never been a better time to own a Sylvan, and in fact, this has been one of our strongest years for franchise development."

As the school year progresses, Fisher said she looks forward to seeing what new innovations the corporate team comes up with next. Its student-minded approach to technology development is critical to the success of the brand and is exactly why Fisher has spent her career with Sylvan.

“Honestly, I stopped teaching full time because of Sylvan,” said Fisher. “Kids in my classroom weren’t getting what they needed on an individual basis, and Sylvan provides that after-school tutoring and opportunity to learn in a new, fun way.”

The startup costs for a Sylvan Learning franchise range from $70,270 to $163,625. The franchise fee is $24,000. To learn more about franchising with Sylvan Learning, visit https://sylvanfranchise.com/.