Eileen H.
Eileen is a Speech Language Pathologist with experience working in the education, healthcare, and private systems across Canada and the United States.
She enjoys working with children and adults with various backgrounds in-person and virtually. Eileen uses creativity when collaborating with families in order to achieve overall speech, language, and communication goals. She holds a special interest in providing services to remote communities and bringing a positive experience to families.
In addition to her MSc. in Speech-Language Pathology, Eileen’s advanced training includes Canadian Hemispheres Level 1-8 (Stroke Competency Series), MBS IMP Certification, SCERTS training, Hanen’s Learning Language and Loving It, and she is currently studying towards her Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy certification. She has taken additional coursework in the areas of trauma practices, neurological approaches for self-regulation, and articulation and language treatments.
In her spare time, Eileen enjoys a variety of hobbies, except needlepoint. She has tremendous respect for those who engage in needlepoint. She is a published author and holds a deep compassion for others and their journeys.
Eileen is a member of College of Speech and Hearing Health Professionals of British Columbia (CSHBC), British Columbia Association of Speech Language Pathologists and Audiologists (BCASLPA), Speech-Language Audiology Canada (SAC), and is a Past member of the American Speech and Hearing Association (ASHA).
Mirza B.
Mirza completed his Master of Arts degree in Political Science (with a focus in political theory and international relations) at McGill University. Prior to that, he graduated from the University of Toronto with a double major in Political Science and International Development Studies. He is currently working as a legal assistant at an immigration and refugee law firm. He has previous experience as a Teaching Assistant and Research Assistant at McGill University.
Mirza is an attentive, patient, and passionate educator. He seeks to demonstrate to students the value in what they are learning and its transformative potential in their lives, meaning he works to make learning content relatable to his students. He also understands the value of individual learning and therefore approaches a student’s education according to their specific needs. His prior educational and professional experiences have equipped him to support students studying history, law, politics, philosophy, and English.
Lori P.
Lori Pollock is a Certified Teacher. She grew up in Alberta, then moved to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan to complete a Bachelor’s Degree in Education in the teaching area of Secondary Sciences. As well, she completed a Bachelor of Science in Biology. Lori was given the opportunity to teach high school science for several years. Lori then moved up into higher education to work at the university level. For many years now Lori has assisted thousands of students to successfully transition from high school to university life. Lori has a passion for engaging and inspiring students to find success. She works with students to set goals and create their own personal success plans. Lori gives guidance on; time management, organization, decision-making, academic skill building, and exam taking. Lori believes that by building strong relationships with her students she is better able to meet their needs. As an experienced mentor, Lori has many strategies to work with students and continues to develop new and innovative ways to guide students to reach their full potential.
Lori now lives in West Kelowna and loves to spend time with her family, read novels, garden and travel. It is through these experiences that her love of life, nature, and science shines through. Lori has a passion for learning, lots of patience with a pinch of sense of humor, a great blend for a teacher!
Akshata P.
Akshata is a passionate tutor and a dedicated learner of the above academic disciplines. Akshata is presently a university student in pursuit of an engineering degree at the University of British Columbia. Akshata has taught English, Math, General Sciences, and other subjects to students from first to university level for the last 2 years. Furthermore, she helps student find their academic goals through rigorous practice and skill-enhancing word problems. Akshata has worked for a non-profit organization in India called HelpAge India in the field of helping disadvantaged senior citizens with their involvement in the community through working with neighboring schools and the growth of digital awareness and education for senior citizens that would love to be closer to their friends and family.
Akshata would want to teach students that making small mistakes in solving word problems is a big component of the learning process and teach them that there is better development from students making the problems themselves and pushing them to the limits to find the best opportunity for them to not only learn from their mistake however possibly teach others in perseverance and find the right solution.
Akshata was a competitive swimmer in upper-year high school. Nowadays, she loves to swim, play badminton, table tennis, and other sports in her free time, hone her skills through new endeavors, and approach new environments. “Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to think” is what she stands by.
Michael M.
Michael has a B.Com. in Economics with a major in Monetary Economics from the University of South Africa. He is currently pursuing his master’s degree in Econometrics at the University of Concordia. He has extensive experience in tutoring, having tutored various levels of economic disciplines and history throughout his studies. Michael’s approach to teaching is to make a personal connection with students and teach with passion while communicating the concepts and material learned in these topics to real-world applications and usages.
Outside his passion for economics and history, he is an avid guitarist, violinist, and novelist.
RUPESH K.
JAMIE Z.
Jamie is currently a grade 2/3 teacher with the Toronto District School Board. He holds a Bachelor of Arts, a Master of Teaching in Elementary Education, and is currently completing his Master of Arts in Social Justice Education. He also holds additional qualifications in Special Education, Primary/Junior Literacy, Mathematics, Reading, ESL, and Kindergarten.
During the summer months, Jamie fulfills the role of Program Director with Westcoast Connection. Over the past 10 summers he has directed programs all over Canada, USA, Europe and Australia.
Malayna S.
Malayna is a Certified Teacher. She grew up in Campbell River, BC and moved to Edmonton, AB in 2011 where she completed an Undergraduate Degree in Arts; majoring in English and minoring in Psychology. After completing her first degree, Malayna continued with her post-secondary education and attained a Bachelor of Education degree. Malayna’s first full-time teaching gig was at an International Canadian Private School in Abu Dhabi, UAE where she taught grade 3 students from August 2019 up until she had to come home due to the pandemic in early March 2020. Malayna’s dream has always been to travel and teach all over the world. Malayna has also been a substitute teacher, respite worker, daycare supervisor, nanny, and worked with at-risk youth.
Malayna’s other greatest passion is the practice of meditation and mindfulness. She is a Certified Meditation Teacher and has taught meditation and mindfulness to many of her students. When she was teaching in Abu Dhabi, she started a schoolwide Mindfulness Committee where her and fellow colleagues taught and shared mindfulness and meditation techniques and practices with students at monthly assemblies. Furthermore, Malayna has a love for sports and physical activity and has coached many youth volleyball teams.
Malayna believes that by building a strong relationship with her students she is better able to meet their needs and grow their learning. She also believes in fostering each student’s overall wellness through a holistic approach. As a mentor, Malayna continues to develop strategies for working with children. She finds these experiences enjoyable and extremely rewarding. She sees herself not just as the teacher, but as a student as well; continuously learning and evolving alongside her students.
Malayna truly believes that engaging students using their curiosity, interests, and individual learning strategies is crucial in helping them gain the confidence they require to succeed. Malayna encourages her students’ learning through inquiry based learning and varied competencies. In her spare time, Malayna enjoys exploring her new home (Vernon) with her partner and their two miniature huskies Hinton and Jasper, as well as anything that gets her body moving! She is also a bit of a bookworm and enjoys exploring and deepening her spirituality. She hopes to be exactly the right support and guide for you and your family!
Anna M.
Anna is excited to be a part of the Prep Academy Team. She is a graduate of the University of Windsor’s six-year Bachelor of Education program and has additional qualifications in Special Education and Mathematics.
As an experienced teacher, Anna is proficient in grasping new course material and supporting students through natural changes in classroom routines. While teaching, her students benefit from a variety of external stimuli (multi-levelled books, manipulatives, charts, graphs, and display of student’s work) which is greatly beneficial for her student’s academic growth.
While tutoring, Anna develops an inclusive model to integrate students with exceptionalities into programs with their age-appropriate peers and discovers new ways of integrating academic theory into teaching. She provides enriched programs in all subjects to meet the intellectual needs of her learners. Using her expertise from an elementary and secondary level, she provides a high quality of tutoring while differentiating instruction to meet individual needs and interests.
Jessica D.
Jessica has a Master’s degree in French and a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology. She has been teaching for the last 10 years and she has recently moved to Canada after many years of teaching in Dubai. Her expertise lies in languages.