November 28, 2025 • 10 mins
Interview with Mellonni Smith from Solara Tutoring Company - The Culture News
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Ladies and gentlemen, Good afternoon, Welcome on the Culture News.
My name is David Cerebro, and I have the pleasure
to have today on iHeart with you on the Culture
News a wonderful, wonderful lady. Her name is Meloney Smith.
Meloney Smith, Melonie is the founder of a great company
called Solara Tutoring Company. So yes, you understood. It is
(00:26):
a tutoring company that is thinking outside of the box
about marketing. This is exactly what we need to know today,
Solara Tutoring Company. And we are so glad to have
the lovely Meloney Smith over the phone. Melonie, how are
you today, Hi.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
David, I'm doing well.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
How are you?
Speaker 1 (00:48):
I'm doing wonderful. Thank you so much for being with us.
So first of all, I love your first name, Meloney.
Speaker 2 (00:54):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (00:55):
Dalian.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
Like where it's from, well, I'm not even sure of
the origin. I just know that it was a pastor
who named me, and he loved the name Melanie, but
he wanted it to have more of an unconventional spelling,
so he put his own little twist on it, and
then we ended up with Melanie.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
And I love that. And this is a beautiful name
Melanie Smith. So tell us about your company. So, first
of all, I would love to know about Solara Tutoring Company.
How did you arrive to create basically a tutorine company?
What was your need? What was your destiny to get there?
Speaker 2 (01:33):
Well, I've been doing tutoring on and off for years.
I've been helping just random people, people in my family,
friends of my family members, and one day my friends.
I'm a professor by the way, I work at a
university in South Florida, and my students kept telling me,
you know, you should really open your own tutoring company
because you're so great at teaching. When you explain things.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
We get it.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
And I said, you know what, I'll think about it.
And it took me a while, but I am finally
ready to step out of my shell and to just
get going.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
And you are keep going. You are definitely a force
of nature who is not afraid, not afraid to grow
into to do things, to do things. So what do
you like so much about tutoring? Actually, so for me,
I just.
Speaker 2 (02:22):
Love when a student comes in completely confused. Not that
I love when they're confused, but when they come in
and they don't understand something and then I break it down.
I love to see them move from point A to
point Z, and sometimes I have to go back to
the drawing board and think of a million ways of
explaining the same thing. But when they finally get it
(02:44):
and their faces light up, that to me is like
the greatest feeling in the world.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
That is so inspiring. Thank you so much for you
know what you're saying. And we say hello, of course
to all the teachers out there who has who have
only one passion, which is to bring education, and that's
the most important that we need. We have Melonie Smith
today who is with us. We're so excited from the
(03:10):
company Solara Tutoring Company. So how Solara was created and
how did you come up with the name.
Speaker 2 (03:18):
So, being fully bilingual myself, one day I was in
Puerto Rico and I saw the name and I drot
it down because I said, one day I'll use this
name to do something. And so when I decided to
officially start my company this year, I came up with
several Spanish, Latin, and Greek names and I sent them
(03:38):
out to my friends and family and I explained to
them what each name meant. So Solara means light in Latin,
and after they chose the one that was their favorite,
most people gravitated towards Solara because of the light and
sunlight connotation, and therefore.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
That was the pick exactly. And you are a sunlight
yourself with all the great things that you're doing, Meloney Smith.
So how do you think Solara Tutoring Company is different
from others? What you try to do?
Speaker 3 (04:12):
Well?
Speaker 2 (04:13):
For me, I think just having the passion and wanting
to see growth in my students is very very important.
And apart from that, Solara also focuses on character development. So,
especially when I'm teaching students reading or English, I tend
to select material that have kind of like a lesson
or that they will allow me to infuse certain lessons
(04:36):
in there. So I'll ask the children guiding questions and say, okay,
so how are you kind at school? Or in what
ways do you help other people? And how does that
make you feel? And so we focus greatly on character development.
We try to infuse that into the sessions, whether we're
tutoring Spanish or English or reading or whatever it is.
(04:57):
And on our website too, there are course is directly
geared towards the character development of young people because I
know that parents are busy between inflation and childcare expenses,
et cetera. Sometimes parents just don't have the time to
invest as much as they need to into their children,
and I can't fault them for this is just kind
(05:18):
of the way things are at this time. So I
think that's what makes us different or focus on character
development as well as a guarantee that our students will learn.
I'm very proud to say that I've never worked with
anyone who was not better off when they left my tutelage.
And so those are some of the things that just
(05:39):
make Solara unique and I'm proud of it.
Speaker 1 (05:41):
And you can be definitely proud of what you have accomplished.
It's extraordinary. You know, Solara is first of all a
great name, but also what you're bringing out there is extraordinary.
Solera Tutoring Company. So if I want to know more
about your company, what do I do? You have a website,
social media? What would you advise me?
Speaker 2 (06:02):
All Right, So I would advise you to go to
www dot learn with Celara dot com and there you
could book a free consultation, or you could go to Facebook.
Selara Tutoring and Learning is the name of a company
on Facebook. I also have a LinkedIn account which is
very new, and a Google profile as well. So if
(06:24):
you google Celara Tutoring and Learning, once it says westbom Beach, Florida,
then that will be the company. But we of course
offer virtual services too, so students all over the US
can you know, benefit from what we're trying to provide.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
Wow, that's really beautiful. So you said the magic word
free consultation. We love that.
Speaker 4 (06:46):
We love the shows that you care and try, that
you are sure about what you're doing because you know
that the people they're going to be they're going to
see results and.
Speaker 1 (06:56):
That's very important. Absolutely, the absolutely you guys deliver right away.
Solara Tutoring Company. Meloney Smith, its founder, is with us today.
We are so glad. So before we start to say
goodbye to each other. Yes, unfortunately, don't cry, Meloney, I
(07:18):
know it's sad. But what would you like to say
to our audience for people who don't know about what
you do and about you know what you said, which
is to think outside the box about marketing and perhaps
(07:39):
what are your next projects?
Speaker 2 (07:40):
Also, well, we're hoping to have parents and child workshops,
whether in person or on zoom, because, as I mentioned before,
I know that these are some difficult times that we're
living in, and their parents were struggling with understanding their teens,
and of course the teenagers often don't understand their parents
as well. So we want to bring them together and
(08:01):
have workshops so that both parents and children can express
themselves and you know, have better relationships going forward. So
that's one of the projects that I'm hoping to launch
within the next few weeks.
Speaker 1 (08:14):
Well, we would be there definitely to support you and
to applaud you. How was your Thanksgiving? It was pretty good.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
I spent it working and brainstorming ways to market the company,
because though I am good at what I do, according
to my students, I'm not very good at marketing. I'm
not business minded and so I'm just learning and all
I need is an opportunity to prove to people that
I can do it. Their children will be in good hands.
(08:41):
So I'm very, very grateful for this opportunity to talk
with you.
Speaker 1 (08:44):
Today, absolutely, and I respectfully disagree with you. You're very
good at everything you do, so just you know, did
you try to market the Turkey or no? Not yet.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
No, I'm vegan, and so there was no turkey.
Speaker 1 (08:57):
Oh I'm sorry anyway, but to happen with me. The
only time I do a joke about the turkey, I
have a Vigian guest. You know, this has been my life.
Speaker 3 (09:11):
This has been my life has been fulfilled by wonderful
people such as yourself, the lovely Melonie Smith Melonie spelled
n double l O double ni.
Speaker 1 (09:25):
Melanie Smith and her company is absolutely wonderful and doing
really things outside of the box and very interesting. And
there is a free consultation Solara Tutoring Company. I'd love
to say if you come on the behalf of iHeart
Radio you have a free consultation, but I won't be.
Speaker 2 (09:47):
Oh, you can absolutely say that, go for it.
Speaker 1 (09:50):
Back in the days, I used to say that after
they told me no, David profering it anyway. You know.
So Solara Tutoring Penny, We're so glad we spoke to
this adorable lady, Melanie Smith. This is a beautiful Thanksgiving
weekend in New York City right now. More music is
(10:11):
coming up on I Heart Radio. Statue with us. It's
a beautiful day
Ladies and gentlemen, Good afternoon, Welcome on the Culture News.
My name is David Cerebro, and I have the pleasure
to have today on iHeart with you on the Culture
News a wonderful, wonderful lady. Her name is Meloney Smith.
Meloney Smith, Melonie is the founder of a great company
called Solara Tutoring Company. So yes, you understood. It is
(00:26):
a tutoring company that is thinking outside of the box
about marketing. This is exactly what we need to know today,
Solara Tutoring Company. And we are so glad to have
the lovely Meloney Smith over the phone. Melonie, how are
you today, Hi.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
David, I'm doing well.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
How are you?
Speaker 1 (00:48):
I'm doing wonderful. Thank you so much for being with us.
So first of all, I love your first name, Meloney.
Speaker 2 (00:54):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (00:55):
Dalian.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
Like where it's from, well, I'm not even sure of
the origin. I just know that it was a pastor
who named me, and he loved the name Melanie, but
he wanted it to have more of an unconventional spelling,
so he put his own little twist on it, and
then we ended up with Melanie.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
And I love that. And this is a beautiful name
Melanie Smith. So tell us about your company. So, first
of all, I would love to know about Solara Tutoring Company.
How did you arrive to create basically a tutorine company?
What was your need? What was your destiny to get there?
Speaker 2 (01:33):
Well, I've been doing tutoring on and off for years.
I've been helping just random people, people in my family,
friends of my family members, and one day my friends.
I'm a professor by the way, I work at a
university in South Florida, and my students kept telling me,
you know, you should really open your own tutoring company
because you're so great at teaching. When you explain things.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
We get it.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
And I said, you know what, I'll think about it.
And it took me a while, but I am finally
ready to step out of my shell and to just
get going.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
And you are keep going. You are definitely a force
of nature who is not afraid, not afraid to grow
into to do things, to do things. So what do
you like so much about tutoring? Actually, so for me,
I just.
Speaker 2 (02:22):
Love when a student comes in completely confused. Not that
I love when they're confused, but when they come in
and they don't understand something and then I break it down.
I love to see them move from point A to
point Z, and sometimes I have to go back to
the drawing board and think of a million ways of
explaining the same thing. But when they finally get it
(02:44):
and their faces light up, that to me is like
the greatest feeling in the world.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
That is so inspiring. Thank you so much for you
know what you're saying. And we say hello, of course
to all the teachers out there who has who have
only one passion, which is to bring education, and that's
the most important that we need. We have Melonie Smith
today who is with us. We're so excited from the
(03:10):
company Solara Tutoring Company. So how Solara was created and
how did you come up with the name.
Speaker 2 (03:18):
So, being fully bilingual myself, one day I was in
Puerto Rico and I saw the name and I drot
it down because I said, one day I'll use this
name to do something. And so when I decided to
officially start my company this year, I came up with
several Spanish, Latin, and Greek names and I sent them
(03:38):
out to my friends and family and I explained to
them what each name meant. So Solara means light in Latin,
and after they chose the one that was their favorite,
most people gravitated towards Solara because of the light and
sunlight connotation, and therefore.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
That was the pick exactly. And you are a sunlight
yourself with all the great things that you're doing, Meloney Smith.
So how do you think Solara Tutoring Company is different
from others? What you try to do?
Speaker 3 (04:12):
Well?
Speaker 2 (04:13):
For me, I think just having the passion and wanting
to see growth in my students is very very important.
And apart from that, Solara also focuses on character development. So,
especially when I'm teaching students reading or English, I tend
to select material that have kind of like a lesson
or that they will allow me to infuse certain lessons
(04:36):
in there. So I'll ask the children guiding questions and say, okay,
so how are you kind at school? Or in what
ways do you help other people? And how does that
make you feel? And so we focus greatly on character development.
We try to infuse that into the sessions, whether we're
tutoring Spanish or English or reading or whatever it is.
(04:57):
And on our website too, there are course is directly
geared towards the character development of young people because I
know that parents are busy between inflation and childcare expenses,
et cetera. Sometimes parents just don't have the time to
invest as much as they need to into their children,
and I can't fault them for this is just kind
(05:18):
of the way things are at this time. So I
think that's what makes us different or focus on character
development as well as a guarantee that our students will learn.
I'm very proud to say that I've never worked with
anyone who was not better off when they left my tutelage.
And so those are some of the things that just
(05:39):
make Solara unique and I'm proud of it.
Speaker 1 (05:41):
And you can be definitely proud of what you have accomplished.
It's extraordinary. You know, Solara is first of all a
great name, but also what you're bringing out there is extraordinary.
Solera Tutoring Company. So if I want to know more
about your company, what do I do? You have a website,
social media? What would you advise me?
Speaker 2 (06:02):
All Right, So I would advise you to go to
www dot learn with Celara dot com and there you
could book a free consultation, or you could go to Facebook.
Selara Tutoring and Learning is the name of a company
on Facebook. I also have a LinkedIn account which is
very new, and a Google profile as well. So if
(06:24):
you google Celara Tutoring and Learning, once it says westbom Beach, Florida,
then that will be the company. But we of course
offer virtual services too, so students all over the US
can you know, benefit from what we're trying to provide.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
Wow, that's really beautiful. So you said the magic word
free consultation. We love that.
Speaker 4 (06:46):
We love the shows that you care and try, that
you are sure about what you're doing because you know
that the people they're going to be they're going to
see results and.
Speaker 1 (06:56):
That's very important. Absolutely, the absolutely you guys deliver right away.
Solara Tutoring Company. Meloney Smith, its founder, is with us today.
We are so glad. So before we start to say
goodbye to each other. Yes, unfortunately, don't cry, Meloney, I
(07:18):
know it's sad. But what would you like to say
to our audience for people who don't know about what
you do and about you know what you said, which
is to think outside the box about marketing and perhaps
(07:39):
what are your next projects?
Speaker 2 (07:40):
Also, well, we're hoping to have parents and child workshops,
whether in person or on zoom, because, as I mentioned before,
I know that these are some difficult times that we're
living in, and their parents were struggling with understanding their teens,
and of course the teenagers often don't understand their parents
as well. So we want to bring them together and
(08:01):
have workshops so that both parents and children can express
themselves and you know, have better relationships going forward. So
that's one of the projects that I'm hoping to launch
within the next few weeks.
Speaker 1 (08:14):
Well, we would be there definitely to support you and
to applaud you. How was your Thanksgiving? It was pretty good.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
I spent it working and brainstorming ways to market the company,
because though I am good at what I do, according
to my students, I'm not very good at marketing. I'm
not business minded and so I'm just learning and all
I need is an opportunity to prove to people that
I can do it. Their children will be in good hands.
(08:41):
So I'm very, very grateful for this opportunity to talk
with you.
Speaker 1 (08:44):
Today, absolutely, and I respectfully disagree with you. You're very
good at everything you do, so just you know, did
you try to market the Turkey or no? Not yet.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
No, I'm vegan, and so there was no turkey.
Speaker 1 (08:57):
Oh I'm sorry anyway, but to happen with me. The
only time I do a joke about the turkey, I
have a Vigian guest. You know, this has been my life.
Speaker 3 (09:11):
This has been my life has been fulfilled by wonderful
people such as yourself, the lovely Melonie Smith Melonie spelled
n double l O double ni.
Speaker 1 (09:25):
Melanie Smith and her company is absolutely wonderful and doing
really things outside of the box and very interesting. And
there is a free consultation Solara Tutoring Company. I'd love
to say if you come on the behalf of iHeart
Radio you have a free consultation, but I won't be.
Speaker 2 (09:47):
Oh, you can absolutely say that, go for it.
Speaker 1 (09:50):
Back in the days, I used to say that after
they told me no, David profering it anyway. You know.
So Solara Tutoring Penny, We're so glad we spoke to
this adorable lady, Melanie Smith. This is a beautiful Thanksgiving
weekend in New York City right now. More music is
(10:11):
coming up on I Heart Radio. Statue with us. It's
a beautiful day
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