Sacred Heart Preparatory is the high school of Sacred Heart Schools in Atherton, a Catholic, independent school whose Prep division covers grades 9 through 12. Our tutors are Stanford students, and we tutor SHP students one at a time in the courses that crowd their week.
Tell us about your student, and we’ll match them with a Stanford tutor who fits.
Meet our tutors
Seven classes plus religious studies
SHP freshmen and sophomores typically carry seven classes a semester, and nobody takes fewer than six. On top of the usual subjects come seven semesters of religious studies and a required service learning sequence that starts with a freshman retreat and ends in a senior capstone. With a load like that, the hard part is often juggling everything at once more than any single course. Our tutors map out the week with an SHP student, and our academic coaching turns that into a habit.
Placement exams before freshman year
Standardized testing is not required to apply to SHP. Placement is a separate step: an entering freshman who wants advanced math, science or world language needs department approval, which may rest on placement exams, 8th grade transcripts and teacher recommendations. We review algebra with incoming SHP students ahead of those exams, so the result reflects what they really know.
Our tutors, in parents’ own words
All reviewsFind a math tutor“Our tutor is truly amazing! He is so patient, explains things well, asks great questions, and checks for understanding. Owen really enjoyed working with him and they accomplished so much. This is really a game changer for us! I had high hopes and he exceeded them.”
Find a writing tutor“Our tutor was a senior at Stanford who tutored my son in English, and also SAT preparation. My son received great marks on the SAT exam and also improved his grade in AP English from B to A.”
Find a reading tutor“The girls have loved their time with her, and it showed: Clara's CAASPP score was excellent and Ruby has done tremendous improvement in her reading from below grade level to at grade level!”
“Thanks for your tremendous partnership over many years!”
Find a math tutor“Your program really helped us. Henry pulled up his English last year to an A, and his next tutor helped him pull up his math and bio.”
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Find a Tutor“Fantastic tutoring service. The tutor (who was a Stanford junior) really connected with my son and inspired him to learn. He had some great study tips and was able to help my son raise his grades by quite a bit.”
Find a math tutor“She found a perfect match for my son… He is stellar. My son has grown leaps and bounds in math. Our tutor is not only a subject matter expert but teaches very well, highly prompt, flexible when needed.”
Find a math tutor“My daughter went from a C in Algebra II to an A- in one semester. The tutor was great, she really related to my daughter and made learning fun for her.”
Find a reading tutor“We had an incredible experience with our daughter's previous tutor from Cardinal for a couple of years!… She is doing really well with her reading and comprehension and I think our tutor put her at two grade levels ahead.”
Find an online tutor“Their response time is outstanding. Neil responded quickly to my tutoring request for my 15-year-old. Love knowing that I have access to these high-quality services for my children. And, we use them via Zoom since we live in Tennessee. I cannot say enough great things about this business:)”
Find a Tutor“Very professional service with excellent teachers. My son loved his teacher, called him the best he ever had! I can very highly recommend it.”
Find a Tutor“I am usually not one to write a review, but I wanted to communicate how great Cardinal Tutors was for my child. They had a very flexible plan which helped accommodate my child's needs and I saw a tremendous return (grade-wise) from their services. Could not recommend more highly.”
Find a math tutor“The tutors themselves have been great: well-prepared, thoughtful and on-time. At each level of math needed, we found these Stanford students to be not just helpful tutors but great mentors as well.”
Find a coding tutor“I have been absolutely impressed by her lessons over the past few months. Lily also loves working with her. She has been making great progress with her programming and writing.”
“I find your tutor quality to be excellent and a perfect fit!”
Find a math tutor“The subsequent long term tutor that we had for pre calc and for ACT tutoring was amazing. She was completely professional, organized, thorough and easy to work with.”
Find a math tutor“You have been a wonderful inspiration for Eli and we are very grateful for having you in the past half-year!”
Find a math tutor“My son had a wonderful experience with Cardinal Tutors when he needed help with his High School math and science classes. It turns out my son also needed help staying organized with all his assignments, something that the tutor helped with as well.”
Find a coding tutor“The program has been awesome for us. Theo loves working with our tutor and has learned so much.”
“Our tutor is just outstanding — great with Theo and very communicative with me. Super helpful!”
Find a Tutor“I reached out to Cardinal Tutors and was lucky enough to find the most amazing tutor. I wish I had found him earlier.”
Find a math tutor“We used Cardinal Tutoring again in the Spring 2018 for precalculus. Once again, she had a great tutor she really liked and who really helped her this year. My daughter is a senior so we won't need Cardinal Tutoring again, but I highly recommend them!”
Find a math tutor“I wanted to thank you for finding our tutor who tremendously helped Sam with his math.”
Find a Tutor“We have had an excellent experience with Cardinal Tutors for the past two years. Neil was very responsive whenever we had any questions. We definitely strongly recommend them and plan on using them again in the near future.”
Find a math tutor“It was great to find a couple of really smart young women who helped not only with the subject matter, but became great role models.”
Find a Tutor“You connected Leo with a great tutor and made the process seamless.”
Find a math tutor“We used Cardinal Tutors and were happy with the level of professionalism and responsiveness we received. The math tutor selected for our son was a good match for him.”
Find a math tutor“Perfect fit to jumpstart my son's new habits and attitudes towards math.”
Find a math tutor“Nora enjoys her sessions with her tutor and it's already helping her confidence with math.”
Find a Tutor“CT is awesome-- they found a great tutor for us. Only wish they could find more!”
Find a Tutor“She is doing great at school, on top of her stuff… We loved working with you and will recommend to friends.”
Find a math tutor“My son looked forward to his time with his tutor and felt good about his efforts and progress.”
Find a Tutor“You and your team are doing an amazing job. Thanks for all the help!”
Find a Tutor“Iris loved working with her tutor!! … Also, I have another student for you — a friend of Iris's that needs help.”
Find a Tutor“Your matchmaking service is very clever and provides great options.”
Find a Tutor“We love our tutor! A great start, she is excellent and has jumped right in.”
Find a Tutor“We had our first tutoring session yesterday and it was fantastic!”
Find a math tutor“Our tutor has been a great fit for our family - she’s patient and friendly and explains math concepts in a way that my 10 year old daughter enjoys. My daughter says that her time with her tutor is the highlight of her day. She goes from a state of panic about math to confidence in just one hour.”
Find a Tutor“We have had an excellent experience with Cardinal Tutors for the past two years. Neil was very responsive whenever we had any questions. We definitely strongly recommend them and plan on using them again in the near future.”
Find a Tutor“She's a great tutor who has helped June progress.”
Find a Tutor“Thank you for selecting an excellent tutor for her.”
Find a Tutor“Our tutor is great! We are very happy with the service.”
Find a Tutor“It's been a great experience for our daughter with her tutor.”
Honors and AP decisions in the first weeks
SHP opens honors sections in math, science and world languages to 9th graders, and in other subjects from sophomore year. An AP course there is generally a full-year commitment that can’t be dropped once the August drop/add period ends, and a switch from honors or AP down to the regular level has to be settled by the last school day of September, apart from a separate process at the semester for eligible students. Those opening weeks are when a math or science tutor matters most, because the first major assessment arrives fast.
The May AP exam is part of the course
Every SHP student enrolled in an AP class sits the exam in May, though the score doesn’t touch the course grade. We set up spring review a few weeks out, and juniors often pair it with SAT or ACT prep.
We come to your home in Atherton or a town close by, or meet online, always one-on-one. We tutor students from Menlo School on the same avenue, too. Send us your student’s SHP course list and we’ll find the right Stanford tutor for it.
Tell us about your student, and we’ll match them with a Stanford tutor who fits.












