One-On-One SSAT Preparation To Maximize Your Score

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. 

Hannah earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Pennsylvania before obtaining a Master of Science from Johns Hopkins University. With extensive experience in student guidance, including five years as a high school mathematics teacher and tutor and teaching college bridge courses to high school graduates, Hannah brings a wealth of knowledge to her coaching role.

As a classroom teacher, Hannah built interpersonal, communication, and problem-solving skills while providing high-quality support to students, their families, and colleagues. After constantly answering college and financial aid questions, she realized her passion for counseling students toward their higher education goals. 

As a coach, Hannah loves getting to know students holistically to understand their interests and passions and help uplift those skills. She is a cheerleader and motivator, believing in students even when they don't believe in themselves. Recognizing the anxiety and overwhelm that can accompany the admissions process, she aims to alleviate stress and always lends a listening ear when students need to vent. One of her go-to mentoring methods for helping students manage tasks is the Pomodoro Technique: 25 minutes of focused work, followed by a 5-minute break, with a longer 30-minute break every 90 minutes. This approach allows her to help students break down large tasks into manageable, bite-sized chunks.

Hannah is excited to support students in the admissions process and ensure they submit compelling applications to schools where they can thrive and contribute to a diverse school community!

In her free time, Hannah enjoys being outdoors as much as possible, where she rock climbs, runs, skateboards, hikes, and surfs. She lived in Hawaii for three and a half years and learned how to surf there. Now, she surfs in a wetsuit in the freezing cold water of New York City at Rockaways Beach! She is also an avid reader, puzzle-solver, and cook.

Ben graduated from Brown University with a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and History of Art and Architecture. Throughout his seven-year tutoring career and as a certified ESL instructor, he has held roles such as tutor, college counselor, and online educator. Ben's guidance has led over 1,000 students to success, including admission to renowned institutions such as the University of Chicago, the University of Virginia, and Cornell University.

Ben loves forming connections with students and watching them learn, blossom, and succeed. He specializes in SAT and ACT tutoring, as well as math, ELA/ESL, history, social studies, science, Japanese, and Russian at all levels, including AP and IB. 

Ben’s tutoring style is student-centered. He prioritizes understanding students' interests, learning preferences, and areas of difficulty from the outset. Armed with this knowledge, he tailors sessions to address each student's individual needs effectively. Moreover, Ben ensures that he communicates with students on their level, avoiding talking down to them—a common pitfall in tutoring—thus fostering a supportive and respectful learning environment.

One of Ben’s standout traits as a tutor is his ability to help students work through learning blocks. Drawing on his extensive tutoring experience working with diverse students, he adeptly recognizes and addresses learning difficulties, restructuring sessions as needed to facilitate comprehension and progress.

In his free time, Ben likes to read, play video games, go hiking, travel, and learn new languages. He combined the latter two passions when he studied abroad in Moscow, Russia for a semester in 2018.