Alex R.

Alex holds a Bachelor of Science in Human Biology and a Master of Health Sciences specializing in Occupational and Environmental Health, both earned from the University of Toronto. Furthermore, having successfully completed the first two years of medical school, Alex’s educational foundation is firmly anchored in the realm of the biological and medical sciences.

Alex has over 15 years of experience as an environment, health, and safety (EHS) professional. His extensive background encompasses areas such as occupational and public health, as well as safety and industrial hygiene. He has applied his expertise across a diverse range of industries, including pharmaceuticals, construction, healthcare, manufacturing, and the services sector, underscoring his adaptability and breadth of knowledge.

Alex is passionate about health and wellness, and believes effective learning needs to be a fun and rewarding experience, devoid of unnecessary stress. He strives for continuous improvement and optimization in his academic, professional and personal endeavours. Drawing from his own academic journey, he aspires to impart his insights and strategies to aspiring learners.

Beyond having strong writing skills in English, Alex also exhibits fluency in both spoken and written Spanish. Coming from a musical family, Alex finds solace and balance in the world of music, playing various musical instruments in his spare time and occasionally performing.

Serena L.

Serena is a friendly and enthusiastic tutor with a broad range of experience working with kids, teenagers and adults. Her specialty in the Sciences but is passionate about all areas of education. Serena has a Bachelor’s of Science degree from the University of Ottawa in Biology as well as a Master’s of Science degree from the University of Guelph.

In her free time, Serena is active in the community and plays or coaches in softball, dodgeball and martial arts. As a student who once needed extra help before thriving academically in her later years, Serena understands that students all have the potential to succeed and is excited to help students find their own excellence.

Matthew O.

Matthew O’Reilly is an educator specializing in the arts and the humanities. He has his Honors Bachelors of Art, Bachelors of Education, and Masters of Education from Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario. He also holds a Masters of Fine Arts from the Alberta University of the Arts in Calgary. Matthew enjoys working with all age groups, having worked as a camp counselor, K-12 educator, and in post-secondary. In addition to being an educator, Matthew is an award winning emerging international artist, having been the recent recipient of the Canadian Clay and Glass Galleries Winifred Shantz Award. Matthew meets students where they are at and tailors his teaching approach to what each student needs. Gamifying, setting goals and tracking progress is Matthew’s favorite way to motivate students. Matthew helps students visualize difficult and abstract concepts by utilizing his strong background in the arts.

Marc D.

Marc has completed his Undergraduate and Master’s Degree in Economics from Wilfred Laurier University where he spent time leading tutorials and assisting students with relevent course work. During his time at University, he led academic and orientation events for first year students whom he is still connected with today. Marc strongly believes his purpose is to serve and help others. Academic and personal success has not come without challenges for Marc and so he is eager to impart his organizational and personal learning stratagies where needed.

Marc currently works full-time at a Tech startup in Waterloo, ON. Outside of work he can be found on long walks, at the gym, with his dog or behind a good book.

ERIN T.

Erin is an Ontario Certified Teacher who completed her Bachelor of Honours Music with a Minor in English and Philosophy at McMaster University. She completed her Bachelor of Education with a focus in At-Risk Youth at Queens’ University.

Since graduating, she has worked for an international private school, teaching OSSD English, Music, Social Sciences and more. She most recently joined the York Region Public School Board as an educator. Her strengths include working with At-Risk Youth, preparing students for post-secondary education, and specifically helping students achieve success in their high school English courses.

JONAH S.

EMILY A.

Emily Agnew is an Ontario Certified Teacher. She grew up in a small town in New Jersey and taught drama and music during the summers at her local theatre, which ignited a love of education and outreach. Emily went on to receive a Bachelor of Music and spent her twenties traveling the world as a singer, dancer, actor and puppeteer. She transitioned into teaching, receiving a Masters of Science in Education, with a focus on literacy in disadvantaged and racially marginalized communities for her graduate thesis. While in graduate school, she was awarded a fellowship to teach reading in the New York City Public Schools. In 2011, after completing a summer music program at Yale University,  she moved to Toronto. In addition to teaching in the elementary grades, Emily has taught art, music, and drama specialties where she has proved to be an enthusiastic and innovative teacher.

Recently, Emily took part in a virtual forum ‘Anti-Racist Education and Parenting: The Life-Long Journey’ with Nastassia Subban to learn about how to model anti-racist education, address racialized communities and work for equity within the schools. She also participated in a virtual choir project, ‘Qilak’, with Indigenous composer Andrew Balfour, and in the summer of 2021 completed a Certificate in Indigenous Canada through University of Alberta. Emily enjoys reading, hiking, singing and being with her family

PEDRO T.

Pedro Tironi is a professional musician, music therapist and teacher candidate from the Ontario Institute of Studies in Education (OISE) at the University of Toronto. He grew up in Chile, where he completed a Bachelor in Arts, minor in Classical Guitar Musical Performance at the University of Chile. He moved to Barcelona, Spain to complete a master’s in music at Catalonia College of Music. Pedro grew up surrounded by books, music and nature which lead him to develop a strong intellectual curiosity and took the opportunity to continue studying and travelling. He moved to Argentina to complete an Undergraduate Degree in Music Therapy at Buenos Aires University. It was during his stay in Argentina that he discovered his passion for teaching and working with children. Pedro has worked as a music therapist supporting the strengths and needs of children, youth, and young adults with learning disabilities, communication challenges, motor disabilities and mental health issues. When he decided to pursue teaching as a career Pedro moved to Toronto where he is currently in his second year of his Master of Teaching at OISE, University of Toronto. It is through teaching that Pedro has been able to discover the interconnection between math and music and foster his love of Math. During one of his practicums, Pedro taught Math at a TDSB school grade 6 class encouraging students to learn math through interactive and hands-on experiences that integrated arts and music. In his spare time, Pedro continues developing as a musician and works one-on-one with children ranging from 4 years through adults teaching piano, guitar, and music theory. He has supported the improvement of their math skills, concentration, socio-emotional skills and music skills and attitudes. Pedro believes that by building a strong relationship with his students he is better able to meet their needs and grow their learning. As a mentor Pedro continues to develop strategies for working with children integrating creativity into the learning process. He finds these experiences enjoyable and extremely rewarding.

GERROD H.

Gerrod Harris has been teaching in a wide variety of classrooms and learning environments for the last seven years. While teaching music both privately and in community centers throughout Markham, Gerrod received his Bachelor of Fine Arts and Education at York University. Certified to teach music and history at the intermediate and senior levels, Gerrod has experience teaching a range of history courses along with English, civics, business, and senior level social studies. Since graduating in 2017, Gerrod has continued extensively teaching music, while also volunteering and working in high schools throughout the YRDSB; joining the Prep Academy Tutors team is his latest step forward into a well steeped career in education.

TAMARA M.

Tamara has been an Ontario Certified Teacher (O.C.T.) since 2005, teaching grades K-12 across most subject areas. Tamara held a variety of classroom teaching positions with the York Region District School Board for 11 years before transferring to private education, then more recently, tutoring. Tamara is certified and trained in specialized reading programs such as Direct Instruction (D.I) and Wilson Reading Systems (WRS). She has Teachables in the following subjects: Reading, Primary/Junior Mathematics, Special Education, Visual Arts, Instrumental/Vocal Music, and Guidance/Career Studies. Tamara also holds a Master’s of Psychology from Chicago School of Professional Psychology, specializing in Child/Adolescent development and behavior. (M.A. Psych) She is certified in Mental Health First Aid/Crisis Intervention (M.H.F.A., 2018), and has co-facilitated a therapy group for counseling children ages 7-9 years who present with A.D.D./A.D.H.D. at Kinark Family Services. As well, at Prep Academy Tutors, Tamara teaches and coaches students at all grade levels, and differentiates instruction for a variety of learning needs and diagnosed learning challenges,  supporting them through many academic, and social-emotional  challenges. Tamara believes in a holistic approach to teaching, and designs lessons that adhere to most recent evidence-based teaching practice (such as learning for/as/of understanding), develop social-emotional learning (SEL), which promotes students’ overall intellectual, social/emotional and mental needs. Outside of teaching, Tamara enjoys spending time with her husband and two children, as well as reading, exercise, painting, and photography.