James completed his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Government from the University of Iowa before also completing his Master’s degree in Journalism from the same institution. After working as a national and international news reporter for several years, he transitioned to full-time teaching, motivated by his passion for helping students achieve their academic goals. James has 21 years of teaching experience, including his current role as a Journalism and American Government Teacher at Chicago Public Schools. He also regularly conducts tutoring sessions and has tutored over 500 students.
For James, tutoring is a means to share his knowledge and help others succeed. He finds great satisfaction in witnessing the "lightbulb" moments students experience. He specializes in ACT and SAT tutoring, as well as US history, world history, American government, American literature, writing, journalism, and economics.
James' extensive teaching experience, deep subject knowledge, and empathy for today's youth distinguish him as a tutor. He is approachable, friendly, and entirely student-focused. He tailors his tutoring to each student's needs and emphasizes successful outcomes, often making uninteresting material engaging by drawing parallels with the real world and subject matter.
James excels at supporting students through learning blocks, drawing on their existing knowledge, and gently guiding them with strategic prompts, suggested skills, and relevant information to help them overcome the block or work around it.
In his free time, James enjoys gardening.
Pamela has earned a Bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and a PhD from Stanford University, where she served in admissions as an Application Reader. In this role, Pamela made admissions decisions and was part of a 40-person committee. This experience gave Pamela a profound understanding of institutional priorities, class balance, and the nuanced factors influencing admission decisions. Professionally, Pamela is an Admissions Interviewer at Stanford University School of Medicine.
As a first-generation international student, Pamela understands the challenges applicants face without access to resources. This personal history fuels her passion for ensuring that aspiring students are well-informed about the expectations of college admissions officers, recognizing the often opaque nature of the process.
With a background deeply rooted in education and academia, Pamela has witnessed the transformative power of learning throughout her professional life. She strategically emphasizes the importance of working hard and smart, instilling a holistic approach to the application process in her students. She navigates the complexities of the admissions process, acknowledging that merit is not the sole determinant.
Pamela's impressive track record speaks volumes, as applicants she has coached have gained admission to prestigious institutions such as Stanford, Harvard, MIT, Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, Duke, Penn, Brown, Columbia, Cornell, UCLA, Berkeley, Emory, Vanderbilt, and many others.
Beyond her professional endeavors, Pamela leads an active lifestyle immersed in nature, residing in the woods and engaging in hiking, rock climbing, running, and various outdoor pursuits. Complementing her coaching role, she dedicates time to teaching in prisons and volunteering as a Search and Rescue aid.
James completed his Bachelor’s degree from Brown University and is a JD candidate at Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. Over the past four years, he has successfully mentored hundreds of students, enabling them to reach their academic goals, and has accumulated thousands of hours as a tutor and college admissions counselor. Additionally, James holds many national academic and extracurricular accolades, such as being named a Coca-Cola Scholar Semifinalist, All-National Orchestra First Violinist, and CT All-State Associate Concertmaster.
Having achieved perfect scores on the math section of the SAT, ACT, and SAT Math Level II, along with 99th percentile scores on the SAT and ACT, James found his passion for guiding students toward similar academic success. At Brown University, James was an advisor to first-year students, mentoring them to achieve success in all aspects of academics. He also has extensive experience packaging college applications and mentoring students on their application essays. James places a strong emphasis on student success and individuality. He enjoys tailoring each student’s application to their own strengths to put them in the strongest light in today’s competitive college admissions world.
With a keen understanding of the intricacies of the application process, he dedicates himself to tailoring each student's application to highlight their unique strengths and accomplishments.
James looks forward to helping students achieve academic success and unlocking their highest potential in the classroom, standardized test scores, and college admissions!
Our geometry tutors are well-versed in all related subject matter and have tutoring/teaching experience or math-related college degrees – all our tutors are experts in geometric topics.
Yes, your parents can see your progress using our progress tracker. From the activities you’re working on to tutor comments and next steps, your parents can feel confident knowing you’re receiving the high-class instruction you deserve.
We always begin by learning more about you, your goals, needs, and preferences to formulate the basis of your customized tutoring plan. This information helps us determine which tutor fits you best.
It depends on the level of support you’re looking for. Our personalized tutoring plans are built with student needs in mind. If you’re unsure which program is best for you, our team is ready to help you explore your options!