One-On-One Personalized HSPT Tutoring

Branden attended Marshall University on a track-and-field scholarship before completing his graduate education at Wilmington University. At both institutions, he graduated with honors at the top of his class. Branden has eight years of tutoring and classroom experience under his belt. He began tutoring after realizing that students often need additional support to truly grasp difficult subjects. 

Branden specializes in tutoring science, math, English Language Arts (ELA), and history. Witnessing the transformative moment when students finally understand challenging concepts is the driving force behind his passion for tutoring. 

As a tutor, Branden prioritizes creating a comfortable and supportive learning environment. He creates his lessons with a light-hearted approach, fostering a safe space where students can not only learn and succeed but also share stories. Understanding the varied ways students learn, Branden provides a diverse set of tools and strategies to meet each student's unique needs.

Branden excels at actively involving students in their own learning. He seamlessly integrates their interests into the material, often incorporating pop culture references to make lessons more relatable and engaging.

In his free time, Branden enjoys surfing, fishing, beach sports, watching movies (preferably with a generous amount of popcorn), and traveling. He has set a personal goal to match the 172 countries his father has traveled to.

Mark earned a Bachelor’s degree from Cornell University. His passion for helping students led him to become an admissions coach, aiming to make the college application process less stressful and daunting. Professionally, he has served as a consultant at IBM. 

Mark finds coaching to be dynamic and exciting. He believes it's enriching for both himself and the students; he helps ease their stress while they reflect, ask tough questions, and grow through the process. 

As a coach, Mark compares himself to a therapist; to help students achieve success, he aims to understand each one deeply. By doing so, he can help match them with the perfect college and enable them to build a more comprehensive application narrative. If a student is involved in a club, Mike enjoys learning about what inspired that interest. If students play sports, he determines whether that interest is driven by competitiveness or a desire for community. Mark believes every application should paint a clear picture so that the admissions board gains a sincere understanding of the student.

Marks believes that inculcating a growth mindset is incredibly important. He emphasizes that nothing is permanent and reminds students that their starting point isn't fixed; improvement is always possible with effort. 

​​In his free time, Mark enjoys going to the gym, long-distance running, recreational tennis, reading, writing short stories, and spending time with his two pet bunnies, Luna and Benny!

Kevin earned a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree from the University of Notre Dame, followed by a second Master’s degree from Northwestern University. He has over five years of experience as an educator and has served as an Admissions Counselor at Northwestern University and North Park University. Throughout the years, he has assisted over 600 students with their college applications.

As an admissions counselor, Kevin enjoys working with and guiding students through the application process. He was fortunate enough to have a sibling who went through the college application process before he attended college, but he knows that not every student is as lucky as he was. Kevin looks forward to assisting students through the process so they have the best chance of being accepted by their dream school! 

As a coach, Kevin is known for his empathy, understanding, and student-focused approach. His ability to stay calm in any situation, depth of knowledge, and reassuring affirmations ease students’ worries about their application. Kevin deeply cares about each student’s success and quickly builds rapport, creating a comfortable environment for sharing concerns and issues. Despite his friendly demeanor, he sets clear and concise goals and expectations to keep students on track.

One of Kevin’s greatest strengths as a coach is his ability to break down the application process into manageable pieces, empowering students to take ownership of their learning—a process he calls guided discovery. Through positive reinforcement and motivation, he ensures each student reaches their full potential.

In his free time, Kevin enjoys working out, reading, and completing puzzles. Some interesting facts about Kevin are that he learned to ice skate at only three years old and he met the President of Ireland and played with his dogs!