ASML and Spectrum Brabant launch tutoring program

Equal opportunities launched as a pilot in February 2021. In the pilot, Spectrum Brabant paired 10 ASML employees, who volunteered to share their knowledge of specific subjects, with 10 pupils currently in secondary education. Several dozen ASML employees have volunteered as tutors since the start of the pilot. Starting March 2021, ASML and Spectrum Brabant will scale up the program with the aim to invest at least 400 hours of tutoring this year.

Janneke Snoeijen, community engagement manager for education at ASML: “Education is at the core of who we are as a knowledge company. We are seeing educational disadvantage grow due to the coronavirus pandemic, especially amongst vulnerable pupils. With this program, we want to help close that gap. All children deserve fair and equal chances in secondary education.”

ASML and Spectrum Brabant offer this opportunity to all pupils who have fallen behind due to a variety of factors. Pupils cannot be enrolled directly, but must be referred by schools, aid and/or social organizations. A series of tutoring sessions starts with an intake and introduction interview, followed by a maximum of six online tutoring sessions. Sessions cover different subjects and levels of secondary education and can be conducted in Dutch or English. The tutoring sessions are free of charge.

Chantal Drossaert, project manager at Spectrum Brabant: “Educational disadvantage can have different causes, but the coronavirus pandemic is making it worse. We are very proud that our collaboration with ASML has led to this impactful project. We hope to inspire other organizations and companies to take similar action. Working together is the only way to beat educational disadvantage in The Netherlands.”

For more information about this program, please visit the Spectrum Brabant website.