A Peer-to-Peer Tutoring Program Thrives at St. John’s Law

Now in its third year, the Law School’s in-house tutoring program provides vital peer-to-peer support while fostering students’ sense of camaraderie and community. More than 30 tutors are available to help in about 20 subjects, from 1L Contracts, Torts, Civil Procedure, Property, Constitutional Law, and Criminal Law​ courses to upper-level offerings in Professional Responsibility, Administrative Law, Evidence, Business Organizations, Federal Income Tax, Trusts & Estates, and more.

The program is designed and managed by Kathryn Piper, Senior Director of Academic Achievement at St. John’s Law. “I recognized that students needed substantive help across several courses, preferably from human beings who had figured out how to do well in those courses recently at this school,” Piper says about the program’s genesis. “We already had a successful peer-to-peer mentoring program, so I knew there were generous students who would make great tutors. I wanted to provide an opportunity for them to support their fellow students, while earning compensation and contributing to the Law School’s warm, welcoming, and collaborative culture.”

Growing and refining the tutoring program every year, Piper takes great care in connecting students who learn best from questions and examples with students who are eager to help others learn. She introduces the program to 1L students soon after they arrive on campus and regularly promotes it through different channels as an important resource available to all current students. Tutors, who must meet eligibility requirements, apply to the program directly or via recommendations from their professors.

“One of the great things about having an established program now is that people who have been tutored want to become tutors themselves,” says Piper. “I think something magical happens in the rising 2L year, where 1Ls realize they not only ‘survived,’ but they know things and want to make things better for the next set of students, or participate in programs they benefitted from in their first year. So, I’m starting to get more students asking to become tutors. I love that.”

Jonathan Schloth ’25, who tutors in multiple subjects, shares Piper’s enthusiasm for the program. “I was a high school history teacher, so I knew I could be effective in this type of work,” he says. “Tutoring is a great way to meet other students and hear about their different experiences. Watching the subject matter come together for them is very enjoyable because it digs back into my roots about why I was a teacher in the first place. Tutoring has also allowed me to become more organized in understanding law school subject matter, and has helped me understand my own study habits.”

Tutoring in multiple subjects has been a wonderful experience for Riki Markowitz ’25 as well. “Our professors are brilliant, but sometimes having a student at your own level explain material can make all the difference,” she notes. “My favorite part of tutoring is when something clicks for the student. We all know that feeling of sitting in a class and just not getting the material, or how it fits into the rest of the class. Being able to explain something in a way that works for a particular student feels valuable.” 

For Markowitz, the value of the Law School’s peer-to-peer tutoring program is enduring. “I've gotten the chance to meet amazing students who I likely wouldn't have met otherwise,” she says. “The students I've tutored are some are the smartest and hardest working people I've met at St. John’s. I'm so happy I'll have them as part of my professional network throughout my career.”