Instructors

Each tutor is a top-tier college alumni and possesses an in-depth understanding of the academic experience from the inside out. We hire by recommendation only and thoroughly vet each tutor to insure their proficiency in a variety of subject areas and general study skills preparation. Most importantly, our tutors are more than just teachers: they’re mentors tasked with providing students with the support they need to succeed.

Ellen Richards

Ellen is an expert on every level of the college application process. By serving as the Los Angeles Admissions Liaison for Wellesley College, Ellen spent ten years interviewing countless students and reviewing a myriad of college applications. Her experience endows her with the expertise and deliberate approach that enables students to search for authenticity when applying to college. Ellen recognizes the importance of her role and challenges students to develop their unique strengths. Many clients deem her a “master strategist.” Ellen’s experience and constant research into changing trends that affect students and their life-long education contribute to her deep understanding of every facet of college admissions.

Julia Ayscough

Julia graduated early from Drexel University with a B.S. in biology. She is currently taking time off before graduate school and working in a lab at UCLA for the department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. Julia has participated in research with the medical directors at UCLA and is published in two journals. She is involved extensively in volunteer work and lived in India for two years working for three non-profit organizations. She travels as much as she can and speaks Spanish and Hindi. Julia loves working with adolescents and is continuously challenging them to develop a passion for learning and creating. She specializes in tutoring biology, Spanish, math, psychology, physics, chemistry and English.

Jonathan Barenboim

Jonathan graduated from Tufts University with a dual degree in international relations and art history. He simultaneously earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston where he concentrated on painting and photography. He is currently pursuing a Masters of Fine Arts in Film Production at the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts. Jonathan is the son of Argentina immigrants and grew up in a bi-lingual household. Among other subjects, he specializes in tutoring all levels of Spanish, French 1 and 2, Italian 1, history, biology, and writing. As a tutor, Jonathan seeks to empower his students with the tools and confidence they need in order to face any academics challenge on their own.

Tracy Bassett

Tracy, born in Naples, Italy, grew up across 6 countries, 5 U.S. states and countless cities between. Upon completing high school here in Southern California, she went on to graduate with honors in Political Science and Spanish at Wellesley College and obtain All-American accolades in cross-country running. After a year spent teaching in Spain and Kenya, Tracy explored her interest in development and international relations by completing a Masters in Latin American Studies at Oxford University. She plans to continue her international trajectory and honor her service ideals via a career in public diplomacy. Tracy enjoys inspiring students with her passion for the humanities, social sciences, and Spanish and specializes in effective essay writing and the college admissions process.

Eric Bergemann

Eric graduated magna cum laude from the University of Virginia with a B.A. in English and a minor in foreign affairs. He was a National Merit Scholar and his senior thesis was selected for publication in UVA's American Studies journal. He is well-traveled, having studied in London, taught English in China and produced a film in India. Before moving to Los Angeles to enroll in the M.F.A. film production program at USC's  School of Cinematic Arts, he lived in New York City, where he worked as a writer and marketing manager. He is currently employed as a teaching assistant for both graduate and undergraduate classes in the film school. As a tutor, he specializes in English, history, government, Spanish, essay writing, SAT prep, critical thinking and study skills.

Ashley Berk

Ashley graduated with honors from University of California, Berkeley. As a history major, she specialized in United States foreign policy in the Middle East and completed a thesis on the extent of United States involvement in the White Revolution in Iran. Ashley intends to attend law school and practice international law. She credits her Berkeley education with helping her improve her writing and argumentative skills. While a student, she interned at the Labour Party Headquarters in London, assisted on a number of political campaigns throughout the United States, and worked with low-income Los Angeles residents as an intern at Bet Tzedek legal aid. Ashley loves learning, teaching, and writing about history and politics.

Brittany Chait

A native of Beverly Hills, Brittany graduated from Beverly Hills High School and currently attends Tufts University. As the youngest - yet very responsible - tutor, Brittany is an excellent addition to our team. She relates well to students currently enrolled in high school and enjoys sharing her story while guiding them through the winding path of college admissions and test preparation. Brittany speaks both French and Spanish fluently and tutors in multiple subjects, including AP English and AP History as well as all sciences and most levels of mathematics.

Tommy Curry

Tommy grew up in a small town on the Gulf Coast of Florida where he spent much of his time playing music and soccer and enjoying the beautiful beaches. He attended Princeton University and graduated with honors in chemistry in 2008. Tommy especially enjoys math and science and appreciates his ability to describe the physical world in great details, thanks to those subjects. He also studied literature, history and music extensively while in college. Having previously served as a resident advisor at Princeton and as a pediatric nurse in his parent's rural health clinic, Tommy is a natural teacher and mentor for children. He loves explaining problems and helping others work them through. He considers it a great joy to the see the "light bulb" come on when a student successfully grasps a difficult concept.

Chelsey Dailey

Chelsey graduated early from New York University with a B.F.A. in theatre. She has always loved academics and feels fortunate that with her A.P. credits from high school, she was able to test out of an entire year of college. Considering herself a "cool" kid who still did well in school, she loves spreading passion and confidence to her students, hoping that she's making it "cool" to be smart. With one-on-one tutoring, she loves the challenge of discovering each student's needs, and then creating a learning process that motivates and stimulates: "I work hard to create a mutual respect so that the student can feel comfortable to make mistakes, but then also feel a great sense of achievement when they know that they really understand the material. Every student is so different, and I love the process of adapting in order to best help them." Chelsey tutors history, math, English, biology, psychology, Spanish, and ISEE, SAT & ACT prep.

Steven Desmond

Steve is a Chicago native who graduated from USC with honors and a degree in Film/TV Production. His work has screened at countless film festivals around the world, online, and even on airplanes. Since graduating, he has worked as a writer, producer or editor for various companies including Relativity Media and Gigapix Studios. He is also an accomplished public speaker and has emceed numerous events.

Alexandra Dorian-Garcia

Alexandra graduated with honors from Dartmouth College in 2005, with degrees in Film Studies, French Language and Literature. Originally from the east coast, she spent time living in Paris and New York before relocating to Los Angeles. Alexandra worked as a mentor for at-risk teens in Hollywood, empowering them to express themselves through creative outlets and learn invaluable study and social skills. She enjoys sharing her enthusiasm for French, English and writing with students, as well as American History, biology, algebra and geometry.

Adam Dunlop-Farkas

Adam graduated cum laude from Yale University with a BA in literature. After graduating from Yale, he moved to Los Angeles to work in the film industry, where he found a job with a newly-formed production company. After two and a half years of reading scripts with the company, he left to write some of his own. In college, he taught for and ran a creative writing classroom program at a nearby elementary school. In high school, he mentored elementary school students in reading and his peers in math. Originally from Miami Beach, he finds the weather in sunny Los Angeles to be on the cold side.

Julie Epstein

Julie, a native of downtown Chicago, graduated from Princeton University with a B.A. in history and a certificate in American studies. After working in public relations for two years in New York, she decided to pursue her true passion, film, by attending the University of Southern California School of Cinema-Television, from which she received her M.A. in critical studies in 2006. In addition to working at various production companies and Paramount Pictures, Julie has always had a passion for teaching. She served as a teaching assistant for various undergraduate film courses at USC, including "Film Style Analysis: Hitchcock" and "Race, Class, and Gender in American Film." She began working as a tutor in college and is well-versed in helping students write essays, prepare for humanities and social sciences exams, improve organizational and study skills, and ISEE, SAT and ACT test prep. She likes to make her sessions fun, help make the material accessible and inspire her students to enjoy learning!

Jamie Fleishman

Jamie recently relocated to Los Angeles from her hometown of New York City, where she worked in communications after graduating from Brown University in 2005. Since she was young, Jamie possessed a strong passion for academics, particularly the Humanities. As an English major at Brown, she achieved a 4.0 GPA, graduated magna cum laude (the highest honors level at the university), was elected to the Phi Beta Kappa honors society, and won numerous awards for her writing from both the English and History departments.

Lindsey Ford

Lindsey, originally from Atlanta, has been tutoring students in the Los Angeles area since she moved out here in 2006. She graduated from Yale with a BA in American Studies and a BA in Theater. While at Yale she was a Freshman counselor and a Senior interviewer for hopeful Yale applicants. She enjoys working with students of all ages in many subjects including Spanish, AP English, SAT I and II, ISEE, History, and Essay writing.

Alex Hernandez-Fumero

Alex Hernandez-Fumero graduated from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts with a BFA in Theatre, and double-minored in Religious Studies and Applied Theatre (the use of theatre in non-performance-oriented mediums, such as education or therapy).  A fluent Spanish speaker, born to Cuban parents in Miami, FL, Alex attended Ransom Everglades School—the top independent school in the region.  After college he moved back home where he worked at first as a substitute, and then as an English teacher, at Ransom.  Upon arriving in Los Angeles, Alex had the pleasure of working with the Pulitzer-Prize winning playwright, David Mamet, in the Atlantic Theater Company’s LA Conservatory.  He is an actor and writer looking to compliment his artistic endeavors with his other passion: teaching.

Hunter Huston

Hunter, originally from Stillwater, Oklahoma, moved to Los Angeles in 1999, where he later graduated cum laude from UCLA with a B.A. in theater. Be it counseling, coaching, tutoring or teaching, he has always enjoyed working with children and helping them excel not only in education, but in life as well. Hunter is also a certified LAUSD substitute and enjoys math, English, and history.

Alexis Jolly

Alexis graduated Magna Cum Laude from Dartmouth College, where he majored in English literature. He specializes in teaching effective writing skills at all grade levels, ISEE test preparation, GMAT test preparation, Pre-Algebra and Algebra, Spanish 1 and 2, American and European history, and critical thinking and study skills. In his free time he enjoys Wes Anderson movies and the writing of P.G. Wodehouse.

Yukai Li

Yukai grew up in China, the United Kingdom, and Canada, and graduated from Princeton University magna cum laude in Chemistry with a side-line in classical Greek. He scored in the top 0.3% in the MCAT and received perfect scores in each section of the SAT and SAT II's. After a year spent doing synthetic organic chemistry in the pharmaceutical industry, Yukai is exploring an interest in Greek and Latin literature at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Oxford, all the while applying to medical school. He can sometimes be found in the viola section of the university orchestra.

Sean Martin

Sean graduated from Drexel University with a BS in Music Industry and a strong background in Computer Science & Programming. With one foot in the Scientific and the other in the Artistic, Sean is a worthy choice of tutor for any subject. His hard work has awarded him with many opportunities, most notably, traveling across Europe with the United States National Collegiate Choir. He is originally from Miami, FL, moved to Los Angeles to pursue a music career and, while working for Ellen Ed, fell in love with teaching and is currently pursuing a degree in Physics in order to teach at the high school level. He is available to tutor Math, Science, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Music, and Language Arts.

Amir Noorani

Amir is a first generation Pakistani-American, originally from Houston, Texas. He attended Cornell University where he graduated Cum Laude in 2006. While at Cornell, he became fascinated with the humanities, focusing on film, sociology and art history. Currently, Amir seeks to obtain an M.A. of Fine Arts in Cinema-Television Production at the University of Southern California's acclaimed School of Cinematic Arts. He hopes to one day direct feature films that are both socially responsible and commercially viable. Until then, he enjoy working with students in a variety of subjects, but his expertise lies in colleges admissions and standardized test preparation.

Ben Pack

Ben began his academic career at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, ranked the number one public high school in the nation by US News and World Report. He then attended the University of Southern California as a Trustee scholar, double majoring in Film and Television Production and French. After studying abroad in Paris and completing his academic and film courses, Ben graduated magna cum laude in 2006 and was designated a Renaissance Scholar. He currently works as a freelance writer and blogs for Examiner.com.

Sapna Rohra

Sapna graduated from Johns Hopkins University with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering. Originally from Lubbock, Texas, Sapna relocated to Los Angeles aspiring to become a professional choreographer and dancer. Along with a strong passion for dance, she hopes to continue her love for Mathematics, Physics, and Chemistry through tutoring and helping her students excel academically. She encourages her students to find their own passion in order to follow their dreams as well. Sapna is currently a free lance Bollywood/Hip Hop choreographer (represented by DDO Artists Agency) and dancer (represented by McDonald Seltznick Associates).

Harjot Samra

Harjot graduated with honors from UCLA in 2007, where he majored in Civil and Environmental Engineering. He was part of the construction management team that revitalized Harvard Westlake Middle School and is currently building the new City of West Hollywood Library. In high school, his course load included various AP classes including AP English Literature, AP Calculus, AP Government, AP Spanish, AP Physics, and AP US History. He understands what it takes for the modern student to excel and prioritize time. He has coached coed 4th, 5th and 6th grade basketball and has over 5 years of experience working in educational services. In his spare time, he enjoys sculpting, biking, and the outdoors.

Orly Sibony

Orly Sibony, a native of Los Angeles, graduated from Wellesley College with a BA in Sociology, a minor in Cinema & Media Studies, and likes to say that she also unofficially majored in French. She was fortunate enough to spend her junior year (and summer!) studying, interning, and working in Paris, France. During her time at Wellesley, Orly worked as an Academic Peer Tutor for two years, creating and leading workshops on academic-related subjects such as study skills, time and task management, and taking advantage of Wellesley resources. This job also enabled her to work one-on-one with students to address concerns about anything from planning out their major to asking professors for research opportunities. On a more fun note, however, Orly was also an active member of the Belly Dancing Society, serving as President her senior year, and one of the co-founders of the Martial Arts Club.

Xan Stevenon

Xan  graduated from  Emory University in 2006 with a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Theater Studies. His love for dramaturgy and American Literature make his ability to teach and tweak composition especially strong. However, his equal, but somewhat less glamorous passion for sports, all things history, and sciences can also aid the endeavors of your child. Loves dogs and lindy hop.

Ryan Webb

Ryan graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a dual major in International Political Economy and Rhetoric. Currently on track to go to law school, he lives in Hollywood where he works as a Legal and Marketing Assistant and plays drums on the side. Ryan specializes in various forms of writing, but admits his legal background has helped hone his skills for argumentative essays. In addition to writing, he has studied the Spanish language for six years at both the university and high school levels. A drummer of 12 years, Ryan has had the opportunity to perform at multiple venues with prominent musicians in the Los Angeles and San Francisco areas. He values the opportunity to work with students both academically and musically and subscribes to a method of teaching that no two minds are the same. “Getting to know my students and understanding their approach to the subject,” Ryan emphasizes, “are the keys toward tailoring unique and specific study habits.”

David Wiss

David, raised in Los Angeles, graduated from Hamilton High School and then matriculated at USC where he obtained his B.A. degree in Social Science with an emphasis in Economics.  After graduation, David became a certified personal trainer through the National Academy of Sports Medicine and has provided fitness training for children, adolescents, and adults, working with individuals and groups.  David strives to help students achieve a feeling of usefulness.  He has taught numerous students in the fields of exercise, nutrition, and academics, believing that together these modalities are complementary in learning to balance priorities and goals.  Currently he is in the Graduate program at CSUN completing his Masters degree in Nutrition and Dietetics.  David specializes in Chemistry, Mathematics, as well as essay writing.  Experience has taught him that open-mindedness is a vital ingredient in the learning process.

Scott Wolman

Scott graduated with honors from Princeton University in 2007, with a BA in English and a minor in Theater, and was selected to give a light-hearted address during his graduation ceremony. While Scott's academic focus was on English literature and composition, he also excelled in a broad range of subjects, including Spanish, math, and science. Scott aspires to help his students to master their coursework and feel confident in the classroom with his sense of humor and passion for learning. Scott is currently a screenwriter, represented by William Morris Endeavor Entertainment.