Reference Letters
(Originals are available upon request)

January 8, 2008

To Parents in need of math solutions:

Our daughter was 11 year old and starting 6th grade when we discovered Dr. Feenix Pan and her Door-2-Math program.  Our daughter had always been a very good student, although math was her least favorite subject.  While she was always capable, she lacked confidence in her abilities, and never seemed to retain the concepts long after the tests were over.  We knew the importance of a solid math foundation for her future education, and although we had no preconceived ideas of her becoming a mathematician we wanted her to have confidence in her ability to learn the subject so that it would not be a barrier to her future aspirations, whatever they may be.

We attempted several home-based approaches, online math programs, and math workbooks.  It seemed all of our efforts only resulted in frustration for us and further damaged our daughter’s confidence in her ability to conquer math.  When we thought we had exhausted our alternatives, we received a mailing and invested the Door-2-Math website.

With Dr. Pan’s guidance, we have discussed not just the math but the emotions and concerns the subject evokes in all of us.  Dr. Pan helped us understand that many people find math difficult, even those who are proficient in the subject.  She told of her own struggles to learn math as a young girl and how it made her feel.  Through this, she connected with our daughter and planted a seed of confidence.

While we still have several weeks to go in our program, we experienced positive results almost immediately (even tough Dr. Pan told us not to expect quick results as he program began).  I asked our daughter how she feels about math today and she said she is definitely more confident.  While she still thinks it is her most difficult subject, she is not afraid to learn it and feels that she can.

Sincerely,

Tom F.
Business Owner

April 30, 2007

To Whom It May Concern:

Our daughter Anne is a smart girl who was always able to get A’s and B’s doing a minimal amount of schoolwork.  She never developed effective learning and test-taking skills since she was never adequately challenged in school.  Algebra 1 in 9th grade provided that challenge, and she didn’t know how to deal with it. Anne started off well, since the beginning of the year was mostly review, but soon her A+’s were mixed with C’s and F’s.  She didn’t understand the concepts of Algebra 1. She refused to go to the teacher for extra help, and our attempts to help her were met with defiance and temper tantrums.

Dr. Pan has been able to explain math to Anne in a way that Anne understands, and she has also helped Anne with her test-taking skills. After a few sessions with Dr. Pan, Anne was earning A’s, doing her homework willingly and showing more confidence in Algebra 1.  Dr. Pan has been very patient with Anne and has calmly dealt with Anne’s ‘teenage girl moods.’  Anne enjoys her sessions with Dr. Pan; Anne says, “ Dr. Pan makes you think.”  Dr. Pan is continuing to work with Anne’s lack of self-motivation.

Dr. Pan’s math coaching sessions have been a very positive experience.

Wallace S., Engineer, and Meredith S., Homemaker

05/14/06

Dear Dr. Pan,

We are writing to thank you for your tutorial help with our daughter, Marian, this year. During her 5th grade at a private school, Marian had gone from an A and B student to a C student with D’s and F’s. Her self- esteem was very low and she had changed from an eager student to someone who loathed going to school or even thinking about school. Her worst subject this year was math -- a drastic change for someone who had won a regional science competition the year before. 

Part of Marian’s difficulty resulted undoubtedly from her new moodiness as puberty began for her and part was due to missing her outstanding 4th grade teacher from the year before. The greatest factor though was how her math was being taught, with a rigid 1-sided interpretation of concepts. We tried to help at home but with the emotional overlay of feeling like every math concept was a do-or-die issue to school success, our help exacerbated the problem. 

What you did, Feenix, was to bring a broad understanding of mathematics as well as an appreciation of the complexities of individual learning needs to bear on the problem. You took a thorough look at who Marian is and how she interacts with her teachers and us, her parents. Then you set out on a plan to help fill in some of the gaps in Marian’s understanding of math concepts; that was the easiest part. Next you taught her and us techniques to approach new math concepts in the future, drawing on the resources of books, her teachers, and her parents. 

After 6-8 weeks the progress was impressive: Marian became a confident student again, getting B’s in most of her classes, and several A’s. What Marian had lacked was not intelligence, but the confidence and several tools to put it to efficient use.  We would like to thank you for helping guide Marian to a path of positive discovery in learning again. 

Sincerely,

June 19, 2006 

To Whom It May Concern:

As parents, my husband and I strive to provide our children with everything that they need. When it comes to education, we will provide whatever is needed for them to succeed. At homework time, we have sat with each of our three children to help them, even help in math — up to high school algebra and then we too experience ‘math anxiety’ and are absolutely no help at all! So we tried to find math tutors through the University, through our children’s high schools, placed ads stating that we were willing to pay, posted 3 x 5 cards in strategic places soliciting a tutor, called countless numbers of leads that led to nothing, and finally starting believing that math help for our high school children just did not exist. My husband and I were heart broken to watch our son Michael work so diligently only to barely pass math and occasionally be able to somehow get a B or C. What was even more disheartening was the fact that he was going into school early, using lunchtime and considering staying after school for math tutoring. But that wasn't’t helping either!! Then we had the good fortune of receiving one of Dr. Pan’s leaflets in the mail. I read it and the testimonials several times and decided to call her. That has proved to be one of the absolute best decisions we have made concerning our son’s education! 

At our first meeting with Dr. Pan she asked my husband and me what we wanted for Michael and then she asked him what he wanted for himself. Dr. Pan then gave Michael an assessment test that enabled her to pinpoint the problem areas. In just a few short weeks of tutoring and guidance, Michael earned an A in Honors Geometry on his progress report. His previous grade had been a D. Needless to say, this not only helped Michael in math, but also boosted his esteem and helped him to perform on a higher level in his other honors classes. 

I know that most parents share my husband’s and my sentiments about education and know its value. Since the world has become so very competitive and technical, math proficiency is a must! This is why we highly recommend Dr. Feenix Pan as an educator, tutor and motivator. We know first hand what her guidance and attentive teaching approach has done for our son Michael. He is no longer struggling now that her has learning how to think about math and is visibly enjoying his success. Now he has to tutor me so I can finally get my Bachelor’s degree in International Business! If you or your child experience math anxiety and problems, we encourage you to seek help from Dr. Pan! What she teaches WORKS! 

Thank you Dr. Pan!   

Michael and Donna P., Business Owners

September 29, 2006

Dr. Feenix Pan
Door 2 Math
P.O. Box 87334
Tucson, AZ 85754    

Dear Dr. Pan, 

I am writing you to give you our sincere appreciation for the added confidence that has become apparent in our daughter, Koryn, and her renewed ability to understand math problems. 

Prior to this present day, she would spend several hours on Math homework that not only frustrated her, but her Mother as well. We sought tuition assistance from other school students that helped with homework problems, but it sorely lacked your professional approach. You saw that her foundation had been unstable and focused on that this first milestone, which we proudly say she has completed in the two short months since we have been  coming to you.  Her most recent test scores have been 95 & 100. This has certainly been a tribute to your ability to communicate with your pupils. Keep up the great work.

March 1, 2006 

To Whom It May Concern: 

My husband, Diego and I would like to wholeheartedly recommend Dr. Pan as a true educator in the study of Mathematics. Our son Diego had struggled with math since elementary school. He avoided doing his homework and had become very frustrated. He had very little self-confidence in his ability to do math and had essentially given up on ever learning it. My husband and I were also very frustrated and seemed unable to help him, despite how much we wanted to. Math had become a four-letter word around our house! 

What brought us to Dr. Pan was seeing how poorly he had done on a math practice entry exam for Salpointe Catholic High School. We realized he needed a major overhaul in how he approached math. We also needed to help him do as well as possible on his entry exam, especially in light of his very poor grades in math. 

I spoke with Dr. Pan by phone, after receiving a flier in the mail. I could tell immediately that she was not your average math tutor! We met with her and Diego took to her right away. He actually became eager to learn math with her and looked forward to their sessions, even though he found them very challenging. Her approach is a very individual and unique one. She is a gifted teacher that manages to engage the student into recognizing and developing their own strengths in creativity and problem solving. The result was that he did very well on his entrance exam and was admitted to Salpointe. More importantly, he no longer avoids doing his math homework and his grades have improved. 

We are all very appreciative of Dr. Pan’s help and highly recommend her to anyone who has struggled with math. Diego has teamed to appreciate the challenge inherent in math and no longer hates it! I too have learned how to better appreciate his own style of learning, as being different from mine, yet still unique and special to Diego. 

Sincerely yours,

Teresa L., M.D.

August 6, 2006

Dear Feenix, 

We as a family are very appreciative of the coaching you provided our son. As parent’s our efforts to identify whether our son’s challenge with 9th grade Algebra was lack of interest, challenged in understanding the concepts, or his not being challenged, made it difficult for us to figure out how we could be supportive of our son. The first session, evaluating his knowledge and comprehension of the math concepts that a 9th grader should have, was one of the most valuable sessions for us as parents. Your ability to explain his level of knowledge and understanding in understandable terms enabled our son to identify where he needed to focus his learning. It also helped his self-esteem in being able to visually see from the evaluation how much he knew. 

Your thoughtful coaching sessions with our son helped us identify the major cause that was standing between our son and his ability to learn math concepts... his personal struggles as a thirteen year-old high school student. We will always be grateful for the assistance you provided us as a family. 

Our son finished 10th grade Geometry with flying colors!  Thank you again for your sensitivity, patience, ability to communicate with young adults, and insights in coaching our son.

Respectfully,

Maggie and Neil M., Business Owners

August 5, 2005

Dear Parent of a Prospective Door-2-Math Student:  

It gives me great pleasure, as an educator and as a mother, to recommend to you the services of Dr. Feenix Pan. I my capacity of Dean of the Division of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics at Pima Community College, I was already acquainted with Dr. Pan’s skills as a very popular and successful math instructor. This is why I did not hesitate to respond to her promotional postcard, when my own daughter began experiencing difficulties in grade four math. The words “Is math eating away your child’s confidence?” rang very true. 

My husband and I are both scientists and have the technical skills to tutor mathematics to our children and to provide them with homework help. Nevertheless, our daughter struggled with arithmetic and problem solving since the first grade. We tried the Sylvan system but, while it helped her through the third grade, it did not produce long-lasting effects. Our daughter seemed incapable of retaining what she had been taught. By grade four, evenings in our household were marred by frustration over math homework. This frustration manifested itself in various forms from pained expressions to shouting matches... and our daughter invariably ended up in tears. 

The Door-2-Math methodology is not a tutoring system. It may begin with identification of your child’s problem areas and may at first, on the surface, resemble tutoring, but it rapidly evolves into something much deeper. Dr. Pan patiently explored our daughter’s underlying fears with math, her relationships with friends, siblings, teachers and with my husband and myself. Through the sessions with Dr. Pan, I got to know our ten-year-old daughter on an entirely new level -- a deeper and more mature level. I gained new insight into her thought processes, her feelings and genuinely grew closer to her as we worked together to improve her math skills. I feel that I have not only improved my ability to assist my child with math but have become a better parent: I have learned to become more responsive her needs. I have learned how to help her learn. 

The lessons that I have learned alongside our daughter have been invaluable. I am certain that they will last a lifetime. 

Sincerely,  

Ann C., Ph.D.

September 6, 2006 

Dr. Feenix Pan,                          

I want to thank you for being such a help and inspiration. You have a beautiful gift to make knowledge acceptable and taking the fear away of being tested. The help you gave my grandson Jake was more than just helping him in his math. You helped him gain confidence in the school arena of his life. He now has a confidence in place of fear concerning math and other subjects. Where I use to see discouragement in his life, he now has a desire for learning and the confidence even to fail along the journey knowing that it is just part of learning. 

Thank you again for helping my grandson Jake, in knowledge and character.

Thank you,  

Gus B., Pastor

March 1, 2005

To Whom It May Concern:   

I’m very happy with the service that Dr. Pan has provided for my son Alejandro who is an 8th grader. 

When I called Dr. Pan, Alejandro was getting 60% on his pre-algebra exams and was very frustrated with math in general. He felt burned out and was tired of trying. During the initial assessment, Dr. Pan pinpointed areas where Alejandro needed the most work and then symmetrically patched the ‘holes’ after that. 

Two months after Alejandro started working with Dr. Pan, his pre-algebra scores climbed well into the upper 90s. He was doing so well in class that he was starting to get bored with the class material. When this happened, Dr. Pan took the initiative and talked to us about either freezing the program until Alejandro needs more help or finding more challenging material outside of class. My husband and I decided to move ahead and keep Alejandro challenged by working on algebra material. Dr. Pan then recommended the Saxon book and Alejandro is well into it by now. Even more impressively, Alejandro is now starting to use the tools he acquired while working with Dr. Pan to some of his other classes. 

I definitely feel that Dr. Pan cares about Alejandro and is always looking for ways to help Alejandro succeed in math. I highly recommend her service.

Sincerely,

Yadira L., R.N.

December 5, 2003     

To Whom It May Concern: 

Feenix Pan has been tutoring our daughter Megan for about 10 weeks. Megan is a freshman at University High School and began having difficulty in Algebra II when the school year started. After a few weeks of school, Megan’s test scores and confidence level had never been lower. In the initial meetings, Feenix reviewed Megan’s skills and identified her weaknesses. She gradually helped Megan to develop the techniques and confidence she needed to succeed. After about 5 weeks of tutoring, Megan turned the corner and has now received A’s on her past three tests, including scores of 97 and 100 on the two most recent tests. Most importantly, Megan’s confidence and self esteem have improved dramatically. She is now confident that she can not only succeed, but excel, in math at University High School. Megan also enjoys her sessions with Feenix, and is now frequently well ahead of the rest of her class in preparation and problem solving techniques. We would highly recommend Feenix’s services to anyone in need of skills and confidence in mathematics. 

Sincerely,    

Karen W., Teacher & Don W., Engineer

December 15, 2004  

To Whom It May Concern: 

Dr. Feenix Pan has been coaching my son Danny for 5 months. Danny is a freshman at the Sahuaro High School and had graduated from Booth-Ficket Magnet Middle School in May of 2004. He had been struggling with math off and on since 6t grade and we had previously tried to get help from the Sylvan Learning Center. 

In the initial assessment, Dr. Pan evaluated and reviewed Danny’s math foundation and his learning style. She then systematically patched up the weaknesses in Danny’s math foundation and creatively taught math “Danny’s Way”. She was flexible in meeting Danny at our home and arranged to meet his math teacher at his school on numerous occasions. In addition, to keep Danny motivated, Dr. Pan taught Danny math at inspirational locations such as Gates Pass and at the Finger Rock. 

Danny’s math grades have been climbing steadily for the past two months, and recently he achieved a remarkable 70% on his exam, up from a low of 31% previously. But more importantly, Danny is much more confident in his own ability to learn math. He has acquired tools to figure math problems on his own and frequently raises his hands to ask questions during classes. What he learned about how to learn can be readily applied to other school subjects as well. 

Dr. Pan is very personable. She took the time to get to know Danny and was genuinely interested in him as an individual. I would highly recommend Dr. Pan’s superb services to others who are in need of mathematic confidence and acquiring tools on how to learn.   

Sincerely,   

Meg S., CRS

April 2, 2003  

To Whom It May Concern:    

Feenix has been my math coach for over a month now and I have already grasped more math information in this time period than in my whole math career. My math grade improved by two and half letter grades with Feenix’s expert advice and help. She helps me understand math in a way I can understand it.   

She is an excellent math coach who is extremely patient, and I recommend her avidly.   

Thank you.

Kirsten W., Student

March 6, 2003 

To Whom It May Concern:   

First let me just say that Feenix is a fabulous tutor. Part of what makes her so great is that she is more than a tutor - she’s a coach. A coach is someone who is wholeheartedly committed to your success, and Feenix’s commitment to my success in calculus is unwavering, even when I’m not feeling so committed or hopeful.  

I have to learn calculus and pass an exam for graduate school in the fall, and during my first week in the class I didn’t think there was any hope at all - I in fact dropped the class and signed up for algebra, but I could tell this wasn’t going to work - I needed to learn calculus not algebra! It was Feenix’s belief that I could do it that inspired me to go for it and stick with the calculus. After one tutoring session with Feenix I could immediately tell that, with her help and guidance, I could succeed.  

Feenix is magnificently adept at assessing where my weaknesses are and where I need help, and then she is extremely efficient at teaching or explaining the material. She is patient, focused, explains things clearly, tries different approaches until I get it, and guides me in how to study. I am midway through the semester, and I’m doing really well in the class. I am absolutely sure I will pass the class and my graduate school exam.  

I highly recommend Feenix as a tutor, teacher and coach. 

Erin K., M.S.

November 2002

To whom it may concern,   

The purpose of this letter is to confirm that Dr. Feenix Y. Pan has extensive experience and aptitude in the area of Optics. Up to the present, she has tutored me in four separate sessions; and it has been my pleasure to have her teach and consult me on my master thesis project in the Optical Sciences Center at the University of Arizona. My thesis work is a continuation of Dr. Pan’s PhD dissertation, and she was hired to help bring me up to speed on the concepts and science behind the complex issues arising from her inventive optical design. She patiently and thoroughly explained to me the foundation of her research, and I was effortlessly able to visualize the concept behind her methods. I can easily see her using the same technique towards teaching science to any age group she desires.   

Dr. Pan is a resourceful, creative, and solution-oriented person who was frequently able to come up with new and innovative approaches to her teaching methods. She recommended effective ways to improve my understanding of an optical system in the easiest manner. Dr. Pan first suggested reviewing the system as a whole. Then she explained the theory behind each component of the system.   

On a personal note, Dr. Pan has superior written and verbal communication skills. She gets along extremely well with everyone. She is highly respected, both personally and professionally- equally by professors, colleagues, and employees of the Optical Sciences Center. In the relatively short time that I have known her, I hold Dr. Pan with the utmost respect and believe that she can excel in anything she chooses to do.     

Sincerely,     

Farshad F., UA doctoral candidate at UA