Does this count as an EC?

Applying to College
1

<p>Since the beginning of 9th grade, there has been a student in my class who speaks my native language but does not know English. I help with a lot with homework, interpretations, vocabulary, group work, and sometimes it feels like he's dragging me down a bit. I don't help him outside of school besides projects of course but during most of the day almost every day I help him, even when he doesn't ask me sometimes. Fun fact: He agreed that the ESL tutor that comes to my school to help him every Friday (yup once a week) does nothing to help him and I do a much better job. I speak and read fluently in his language but I don't think my teachers and himself of course, sees it as an EC, however I think it has impacted my high school career, maybe even in a negative fashion grade-wise, but more importantly, his English improved and his grades has been excellent, better than a lot of the native speaking students in my school....I have even further related information like my native SAT II test I got a perfect score on. </p>

<p>My class size is approx. 65 and we cannot really pick any of the academic classes, so I am stuck with him most of the day.</p>

<p>Even though I am not lying at all, it would feel weird if they try to call my school or something because my teachers and the student does not know that I am putting it as an EC on Common App. </p>

<p>So any thoughts? </p>

2

<p>I would definitely include it. You can call it something like tutoring a peer with same native language. Colleges won’t call your school to verify something like that. The only time colleges call to verify is if your recs say something directly conflicting or if two students from the same high school claim the same leadership position (has happened at my school in the past).</p>

3

<p>Yep that’s almost exactly what I called it, Peer Tutoring ESL Student etc.
Also, do you think I should ask my newspaper executive/previous English teacher to put in the rec he wrote for other college programs for my Common App? I was involved in the school online newspaper since it started, and in 10th grade, I was one of the two people that wrote the most articles because other people weren’t writing them. However, my grades declined a bit so I decided to contribute less (much less) in 11th grade. And thank God I got straight As. Should I tell him to include the rec he already wrote as an additional one or is that too much? I am going to write it in additional info but the rec could verify it for me, sort of. I don’t know what he wrote in it but I got in to all 3 programs I used his recs in. </p>