Kind Words
Carly has been a godsend to our son with ADHD and a Learning Disability (LD)! We’ve had our share of tutors and focused reading interventions over the years so I can confidently say that Carly is not only exceptionally qualified as an academic tutor, but also highly skilled at developing positive rapport with students. Carly’s experience teaching kids with LDs comes through loud and clear in her methodologies which she shares in detailed tutoring session summaries. I love how she works not only on reading comprehension and writing, but also the spoken word (enunciation and pauses / cadence.) She also knows all the tricks of the trade when it comes to helping math-challenged students and has really boosted our son’s confidence in math fundamentals. Finally, Carly is organized and professional when it comes to maintaining appointments and providing clear and timely billing statements.
— Margaret, parent
The first thing I noticed and liked about Mike was his warm and genuine personality. He immediately made me feel welcomed in a way no teacher had before, and I could tell he truly cared about his students. I had always felt behind in language arts at my previous schools, but Mike’s class quickly became my favorite. The way he engages with his students makes you want to come to class and learn, even when he’s teaching a difficult subject. One thing he’s especially great at is meeting each student where they’re at. He understands that we all have different learning styles, and he works hard to learn each and every one. In other classes, I’d be nervous to ask questions out of fear of being wrong, but I never had that fear with Mike. He had a way of helping everyone see their own strengths, especially when they felt unable to see them for themselves. For years, I wished for a teacher like Mike to come along, and when he did, it was life-changing. The impact he had on not only my academic journey, but my personal journey, changed the way I viewed school altogether. Because of Mike, I gained so much confidence both in and out of the classroom. He genuinely changed my life for the better, and his impact will stay with me forever.
— Maple, student
I actually look forward to my sessions with Carly. If I can’t finish my work at school, she helps me get it done without making me feel stressed. The best part is that my parents and I don’t fight about homework anymore. She’s nice, calm, flexible, helpful, nonjudgmental, funny, and relatable.
— 8th grade student
We met Carly when our middle school son was struggling with dysgraphia, executive functioning, rigidity. He was resistant to writing, structure developed by others, goal setting and school in general. In her unique and very magical manner, she established an incredible trusting relationship with him, inspired respect for math and its utility in the world, found a way to get him to embrace goal setting and even believe he could be a writer too. After many years of frustration, we finally saw our son flourishing in school under her tutelage. Her advocacy for students is fierce, her belief in their capabilities is unparalleled and her ability to meet every individual student where they are and walk with them to where she knows they can go is awe-inspiring. Years later, our son is thriving in school and we still invoke “Haugerisms” and turn to the inspiration and support she extended to our whole family.
— C & R Wheeler, parents
This is coming from not a parent, but a student of Carly’s. I was lucky enough to be taught by her for two years through seventh and eighth grade. I’ve struggled in the subject math my whole life because of my learning disability, Dyscalculia, and I developed a major fear of math not only because of my inability to grasp a lot of concepts, but because I was incredibly fearful of how I was perceived by people around me. I felt inferior and unintelligent, and my way of dealing with that was avoiding and refusing to do anything math-related entirely. That was about the standpoint I was at when I met Carly, and I certainly didn’t make it easy on her. She created a space where judgment did not exist and I was within my own learning pace, and she incorporated things that interested me, like art. Eventually, I remember being coaxed to challenge myself. The biggest improvement for me was the confidence I had in my own abilities, which Carly absolutely impacted. I love you Ms. HayHay <3
— Rylie, student
When I asked my 13 year old son why he liked his math teacher Carly Hauger, here is what he said: “I made progress in math because she makes it less boring and so I was more motivated. Her excitement for math is contagious. She connects with her students, and does fun, relevant, creative lessons like World Cup math. I loved when I got to create my own word problems. It helps that she is also just a great person.” We are so grateful to have found Carly to help our math student grow, and recommend her for your Math explorer without hesitation.
— The Boleyn Family
Before Mike my tutoring experience felt repetitive with boring routines, but now I look forward to tutoring. Instead of memorization, it feels more like a learning experience where I feel like I know how to do it. My ability to start writing has been improved and I now write for longer periods at a time, and now I have a better grasp of language and vocabulary, and a higher level of confidence. My sessions are now more engaging and fun, and it doesn’t feel like we’re trying to get it over with.
— Levi R, Student
We are so glad we found Mike! Our son has been working with him for about eight months, and the difference has been profound. We’ve seen significant improvement both academically and personally. His grades have improved, he is more motivated, and he’s working much more independently in the classroom.
We’ve also noticed positive changes at home. His confidence has grown tremendously, along with his initiative and overall sense of motivation. Whatever Mike is doing during their sessions is clearly making a meaningful impact during this pivotal stage of our high schooler’s life as he begins thinking about his future.
We are incredibly grateful for Mike’s support and the positive influence he has had on our son.
— Laura R, Parent
I had never known a teacher who truly cares until I met Mike. Mike has a strength of teaching students who do not learn in the traditional ways. He teaches through experience and conversation. He doesn't just straight up tell you the information, but mentors and directs you as you make your own observations and realizations. He wants you to learn through not only reading and writing, but conversation and real life experience. Mike's classroom quickly became my safe place. He taught me that I should not be afraid to put myself out there, but I should be excited. He taught me that a truly good teacher never stops learning. Mike learns from his students and embraces the individuality of each student to make them feel seen and heard. And most importantly, he gives his students a safe place to learn about themselves as well as the world around them. He redefined my definition of a teacher.
— Arrow L, Student
I have known Mike Duffer as a Language Arts educator for over ten years and can recommend him without hesitation for a wide range of educational needs. His expertise spans from remediation for students with special needs to challenging gifted learners to reach their full potential. Mike draws on his extensive teaching experience to quickly identify each student’s individual language needs and implements a relationship-based approach alongside a rigorous, thoughtfully designed curriculum. This combination helps students feel both supported and confident as they learn. I highly recommend him for students of all levels and abilities.
— Amanda Morris, Educator
Carly Hauger is, quite simply, one of the most gifted teachers I have encountered in my thirty- five-year career in education. Carly’s primary goal is always to understand the student as a human being and a learner. It is through this understanding, both intuitive and informed by years of experience working with children, that Carly connects meaningfully with students and becomes a co-learner on a meaningful journey. Carly has a way with students, particularly middle schoolers, that makes them feel seen and heard. The trust that grows from her methodology, along with the desire to pursue each student’s passion and interests while leveraging their unique strengths, makes Carly a truly unique and deeply talented teacher; any student would be lucky to partner with her!
— Dave Provost, Career School Leader, Former Executive Director, Bridges Middle School
Working alongside Mike at a highly regarded alternative high school, I've witnessed his engaging, rigorous, and compassionate teaching practice for many years. He is one of the most talented educators I've ever encountered.
Mike strikes the perfect balance between patiently meeting learners where they are and pushing their minds into places they couldn't have imagined possible. By trusting the process, believing in each student's capacity, and taking time to build genuine relationships, he creates spaces of academic and intellectual exploration that are exciting, playful, and deeply rewarding.
Mike genuinely enjoys the challenge of igniting curiosity and finding rich ways to promote real learning — the kind that yields not just skills and sharper understanding, but growth in students' sense of themselves as learners and as people. With Mike, students gain tangible academic skills and a true sense of their own capability and gifts.
He is a whole-person educator. To serve a learner well, he believes you have to know them fully — and that perceptiveness allows him to attend carefully to areas of needed growth, amplify strengths, and uncover unrealized talents. His calm, humor, sharp intellect, and genuine kindness create the conditions for even the most reluctant learners to build trust, find confidence, and reach new heights.
Simply put, time with Mike makes you better.
— Aaron B, HS Administrator
When Ms. Hauger became my teacher, I felt more successful in math than ever before. I felt like I was getting math instead of just being told what to do. She understood how to teach me so that I could learn. Hauger was there to help me whenever I needed it. She took her time to help me understand whatever I needed to. If I didn’t get it, she would keep explaining it in different ways until she found a way that worked for me. She taught us math in fun, unique and creative ways. Even years later, I still get a fond feeling when I think back to her classes.
— Elliott W, Student
My great nephew came to live with me when he was 8 y.o. We have been navigating his education and how to best meet his needs of learning with his ADD. He has had tutoring, math in particular, since his Montessori grade school days. Since arriving at his new middle school for 7th grade, Carly, his math and language arts teacher had a distinct appreciation and connection with him and we eagerly moved into her also tutoring him in the summers and after school. Her creative and skilled ability to help him with math and beyond has been a core achievement with unique ways of presenting the subject and clever and wise ways to engage him. But equally valuable has been his growth in motivation to learn, confidence in his learning and how that has shown up in other aspects of his life. The magic recipe has been: love, the right school/teachers, guitar, health care, and Carly Hauger. She is a gem and a core member of the team.
— Dr. Tori Hudson
Carly Hauger is astonishing in all the ways I have perceived in her work with students, both kids with neuro-diversity who learn differently, or kids who have been over-looked in the limited standard educational systems so many schools can only provide. The joy Carly finds in her work, her ability to attune and align with the whole person, and her treasury of creative interventions is the best atmosphere for change and for learning, and this she provides unsparingly. I could not recommend her more highly.
— Dee Packard, Licensed Professional Counselor
Carly was fundamental in building my son's confidence and success in Middle School. She took the time and care to get to know his learning style, meet him where he was at, and present concepts in a way and pace that really worked for him. She made it fun and interesting. Carly is an incredibly caring, intuitive, and invested teacher who is very talented. She gets to know each child and gets excited by their achievements and growth. We are grateful that she was my son's teacher- he went to her as an insecure math learner and by the end of Middle School he was confident, capable, and enjoyed math.
— Amy, Parent
