Lena H.
Lena is a certified Texas educator with a creative, student-centered approach to helping learners build confidence, strengthen academic skills, and discover how they learn best. She holds a Texas EC–12 teaching certification and brings several years of classroom experience working with students from early elementary through middle school, along with experience supporting learners with a wide variety of academic abilities, learning styles, and individual needs.
Lena graduated from the University of Texas at San Antonio with a Bachelor of Arts in Art, earning a 3.81 GPA. Her university studies also reflected her broad interest in the humanities and social sciences, with coursework exploring literature, culture, history, and the ways art and storytelling reflect society. This interdisciplinary background has helped shape her ability to make subjects such as English, writing, history, geography, and social studies more engaging and relatable for students.
As a classroom educator, Lena has taught hundreds of students across elementary and middle school settings and has designed more than 75 standards-aligned lessons. Her experience includes developing curriculum, differentiating instruction, incorporating educational technology, assessing student progress, and finding creative ways to present information so students can better understand and retain it.
Lena is particularly passionate about working with students who benefit from a more individualized approach to learning. She has managed and implemented IEP accommodations for special education students and has completed additional professional training in dyslexia awareness, mental-health response, and Capturing Kids’ Hearts. She has developed a strong connection with neurodivergent students, including learners with ADHD and autism, and strives to create an environment where students feel understood, supported, and comfortable asking for help.
Lena specializes in English, English Language Arts, reading, writing, spelling, and middle school Language Arts, along with a broad range of humanities and social sciences, including U.S. History, World History, Geography, Human Geography, Social Studies, Psychology, Sociology, and Philosophy. She also supports students in AP English, AP Human Geography, AP World History, college essay writing, and introductory college-level English and Psychology.
In addition, Lena works with students on executive functioning, test-taking skills, and standardized test preparation, including English preparation for the SAT and ACT, as well as STAAR Reading and Social Studies. Her experience with organization, differentiated instruction, and individual accommodations makes her especially well suited for students who understand the material but struggle with planning, organization, task completion, or demonstrating what they know on assignments and tests.
One of Lena’s greatest strengths is her ability to approach academic material creatively. Her background in art and visual storytelling allows her to incorporate visual explanations, step-by-step modeling, and alternative ways of presenting information when traditional instruction isn’t connecting with a student. Rather than expecting every learner to process information in the same way, Lena works to discover what makes a concept “click” for each individual student.
Families appreciate Lena’s patience, creativity, and ability to build genuine connections with students. She believes students are more willing to challenge themselves when they feel safe making mistakes and know their teacher genuinely understands them. Her goal is to help students recognize their own strengths while developing the academic skills, strategies, and independence necessary for continued success.
Outside of teaching, Lena is an artist and storyteller who has had a lifelong love of comics and animation. She enjoys creating her own stories and artwork exploring underrepresented communities and themes of justice and representation. She brings that same curiosity, creativity, and appreciation for different perspectives into her work with students.
Todd M.
Todd is an experienced science educator, biological scientist, and outdoor educator with more than 15 years of experience helping students understand and appreciate the natural world. With expertise spanning biology, chemistry, environmental science, anatomy, and the earth sciences, Todd is passionate about showing students that science is much more than memorizing vocabulary and formulas—it is a way of understanding how the world around them works.
Todd earned his Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Louisiana and pursued graduate study in Environmental Health Science at the University of Georgia. His scientific background extends well beyond the classroom and includes professional experience in ecological research, environmental science, wildlife biology, and federal environmental programs.
Before focusing primarily on education, Todd worked as a Physical Scientist with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), where his work involved environmental policy, air quality, offshore exploration, and federal environmental regulations. He also served as a research associate studying carbon sequestration in southeastern U.S. swamps and wetlands and worked as a biological science technician conducting field surveys of wildlife populations, endangered plant studies, and conservation programs.
Todd brings this extensive real-world scientific experience directly into his teaching. As a science instructor, he has taught Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Science while developing curricula that incorporate hands-on experiments, interactive activities, and outdoor educational experiences. His greatest area of expertise is the biological sciences, and he especially enjoys helping students connect concepts from biology and ecology to things they can observe and investigate in everyday life.
His tutoring expertise includes Biology, AP Biology, Cell Biology, , Anatomy, Chemistry, AP Chemistry, Physics, Physical Science, Earth Science, Environmental Science, Geology, and Space Science, as well as middle school math. Todd also supports students preparing for 8th-grade Science STAAR, the ACT, and the TEAS exam, along with helping students develop stronger study habits and test-taking strategies.
One of Todd’s greatest strengths is his ability to make science tangible. Rather than relying solely on textbooks, he enjoys using experiments, demonstrations, outdoor exploration, and real-world examples to help students understand why scientific concepts work. His background as both a scientist and outdoor educator allows him to answer the question students so often ask: “When am I ever going to use this?”
Throughout his teaching career, Todd has worked with students representing a wide range of abilities, learning styles, and confidence levels. He believes students learn best when they feel comfortable asking questions, making mistakes, testing ideas, and discovering answers for themselves. His tutoring style is patient, encouraging, and highly interactive, with an emphasis on building genuine understanding rather than short-term memorization.
As both an educator and the father of three teenage boys, Todd also understands that no two students learn exactly the same way. Sometimes a student simply needs to hear a concept explained differently or see it demonstrated in a new context before everything begins to click. His goal is to identify that connection for each learner and use it to build greater confidence, curiosity, and independence.
Outside of education, Todd enjoys hiking, camping, geocaching, and exploring the natural world with his family. He is also a former drummer—a background that may explain both his appreciation for creativity and his comfort managing the occasional controlled chaos that comes with helping young people learn.
Ultimately, Todd wants students to leave tutoring with more than improved grades. He strives to help them become stronger problem-solvers, more confident learners, and perhaps even discover that science can actually be fun.
Sana T.
Sana grew up in Illinois and received her Bachelors Degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago with a major in biological sciences and a double minor in mathematics and psychology. Her zeal for learning is what drove her to study mathematics and psychology alongside biology. She has a fervor to learn about science and math, stay up to date with advancements in the fields, and teach that knowledge to others.
She started off her journey as a tutor while she was just in middle school! She was a private academic tutor for 15+ years and tutored on a variety of subjects, including math, science, English, and reading at the elementary, middle, high school, and undergraduate levels. She started off her teaching experience as a mathematics instructor for K-12 math subjects and moved on to the role of a test prep instructor specializing in helping adolescents prepare for all subjects covered by the SAT and ACT. She gained most of her specialized teaching skills while being a STEM teacher and mentor at Fusion Academy, a school that specializes in giving personalized instruction to students that caters to their individual learning styles and patterns. While here, she was really able to hone in on identifying students’ individual needs and preferences and allow for them to reach their maximum learning potential. Sana values the student-teacher relationship and believes that true learning can only happen in an environment of acceptance, trust, and comfort. She puts importance on developing rhetoric, engaging with her students, and allowing them to feel at ease and ask any questions that facilitate and spark their learning. Teaching and connecting with students is truly a passion for Sana!
In her free time, Sana loves spending time playing with her toddler and nieces and nephews, engaging them in wonderful discoveries of the magnificent world around them! She admires nature and enjoys taking walks outdoors and sightseeing. She also has a passion for the arts, whether that’s in the form of movies, books, painting, drawing, and more!
Sana can’t wait to meet you and help you on your journey of growth and development to reach your full potential! 🙂
Trupti P.
Trupti’s background is unique, and it reflects in her teaching approach. She completed the math program at Kumon Learning Center by the 8th grade, after which she immediately began working as an Assistant Grader. Since then, Trupti has been teaching a diverse range of students, from elementary level to higher education. Her teaching philosophy is understanding students and creating a safe space to meet each other halfway. She finds joy in motivating students and being a stepping stone in their academic journey.
Trupti holds an M.S. in Biomedical Sciences from the University of Illinois Chicago and in Biology from the University of West Florida. She received her B.S. in Environmental Science with a minor in Spanish at Benedictine University. She has studied abroad in Spain and the Bahamas.
Currently, Trupti is a new adjunct instructor teaching Introduction to Biology at Harold Washington College. Outside the classroom, Trupti is an artist at heart. She loves dancing, yoga, music, and venturing to museums and plays. In her free time, she volunteers at the Blind Services Association, reading to the visually impaired.
In all, Trupti is a dedicated, empathetic, and passionate educator. She applauds students who show up, even when it seems impossible. Everyone is welcome in this classroom!
Deborah B.
Debbie has dedicated her life to teaching and can’t imagine it any other way. Currently a reading specialist, her long career has included a wide variety of educational experiences and learning opportunities. To begin her career, she earned a B.S.Ed. in Special Education from NIU and taught for six years in instructional classrooms in which elementary and middle school students had a variety of special needs. Given the unique struggles that the students in her classes had learning to read and write, Debbie returned to NIU and achieved her M.S.Ed. in Reading Education. She then taught reading and writing in a middle school general education classroom for two years.
As a teacher of both special education and general education, Debbie yearned to work with students who would benefit from individual or specialized instruction in order to thrive. Her decision to become a middle school reading specialist allows her to do this. An additional part of her role is to provide professional learning for other educators in how to embed best literacy practices into their classrooms.
Debbie has two daughters – one who is grown and the other in college. Both girls were diagnosed with anxiety disorders while in school. So Debbie knows, from the perspective of a parent, the complexities of meeting the needs of a child who struggles. Debbie believes in the importance of forming positive relationships with students, which is dependent on seeing each student as a whole person. Each student brings unique experiences, strengths, and fears to every learning situation. It is through recognizing a child’s strengths and interests that they learn that it is safe to make mistakes. That is how we learn. It’s how we learn to master skills and enjoy learning.
Debbie lives with her family, dogs, and cats, in Elburn. She loves playing with her pets, walking in the woods, watching baseball, and working with children.
Ali S.
Ali is an accomplished medical student, neuroscience researcher, and educator who is passionate about helping students build confidence while mastering challenging academic subjects. She is currently pursuing her Doctor of Medicine degree at UT Health San Antonio’s Long School of Medicine with plans to specialize in neurology. Her medical education has reinforced her belief that the ability to teach complex ideas clearly is one of the most valuable skills an educator—or physician—can possess.
Ali graduated with honors from Michigan State University, earning bachelor’s degrees in Neuroscience, Genomics & Molecular Genetics, and Spanish, while also completing the university’s Honors College program. Before beginning medical school, she spent two years as a full-time research fellow at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) studying neurodegenerative diseases. Her research experience also includes work at Stanford University, Michigan State University, and UT Health San Antonio, where she continues to contribute to neuroscience and stroke research. She has co-authored numerous peer-reviewed scientific publications and has presented her research at national scientific conferences.
Throughout college, her research career, and medical school, Ali has consistently served as a mentor and educator for fellow students. She enjoys breaking difficult concepts into manageable pieces and believes every student can succeed when material is presented in a way that matches their learning style. Her patient, encouraging approach creates a supportive environment where students feel comfortable asking questions, working through mistakes, and developing lasting confidence.
Ali provides tutoring across a wide range of subjects from elementary school through college, making her an excellent choice for families seeking support in multiple areas. Her specialties include:
- Mathematics: Pre-Algebra, Algebra I & II, Geometry, Trigonometry, Pre-Calculus, Statistics, and AP Statistics
- Science: Biology, AP Biology, Chemistry, Anatomy, Physiology, Genetics, Cell Biology, Neuroscience, Pathophysiology, Earth Science, Environmental Science, Physical Science, and Health Sciences
- English & Humanities: Reading, English Language Arts, Writing, Technical Writing, College Essay Coaching, AP English, U.S. History, World History, Geography, Psychology, Sociology, and Social Studies
- Test Preparation: ACT, PSAT/SAT, STAAR, GED, TEAS, MCAT, and advanced study and test-taking strategies
Ali is particularly passionate about helping students develop the critical thinking, study habits, and problem-solving skills that lead to long-term academic success. Whether she’s preparing a middle school student for STAAR exams, helping a high school student succeed in AP Biology, guiding a college applicant through personal statement revisions, or mentoring a future healthcare professional preparing for the MCAT, she tailors every lesson to the individual student’s goals and learning style.
Families especially appreciate Ali’s ability to connect ideas across disciplines. She can explain biology through chemistry, strengthen scientific writing while teaching critical thinking, or connect mathematics to real-world medical applications. Her interdisciplinary background allows her to help students build a deeper understanding rather than simply memorizing information.
Ali believes great tutoring should do more than improve grades—it should help students become confident, independent learners who enjoy tackling new challenges. Her goal is to equip every student with the knowledge, study strategies, and self-confidence they need to succeed well beyond the classroom.
Outside of academics, Ali enjoys reading, traveling, golfing, paddle boarding, spending time with her family and cats, and returning home to Wyoming whenever she has the opportunity.
Lindsay C.
Lindsay is an accomplished elementary educator with more than a decade of experience working with children in a variety of educational settings and five years as a certified public school teacher. After several successful years in the classroom, Lindsay chose to transition into private education so she could focus on providing personalized, one-on-one instruction that meets each student’s unique learning needs. She continues to serve North East ISD as a substitute teacher while dedicating her primary professional focus to tutoring students across the San Antonio area. Lindsay earned her degree in Education from Texas State University, graduating with honors while also completing double minors in Psychology and Music. During her time as a classroom teacher in North East ISD, she taught fourth and fifth grade and was recognized by the Texas Education Agency as being among the top 33% of teachers in the state for student academic growth and performance. Throughout her career, she has worked with students ranging from infants to college-age learners, giving her a broad understanding of child development, learning styles, and effective instructional strategies. She specializes in elementary education (K–5 all subjects), reading, writing, English Language Arts, social studies, STAAR preparation, handwriting, spelling, and test-taking strategies. Lindsay has extensive experience supporting English Language Learners, gifted and talented students, and students receiving special education services. She has also taught inclusion classrooms, monitored individualized education plans, and adapted instruction to meet a wide variety of learning needs. In addition to classroom teaching, Lindsay develops educational curriculum and instructional resources used by teachers across the country. Through her curriculum design work, she creates engaging lessons, digital resources, and classroom activities that help students learn in meaningful and interactive ways. Families appreciate Lindsay’s energetic, organized, and encouraging teaching style. She believes every child is capable of success when instruction is tailored to their individual strengths, and she enjoys helping students build confidence alongside strong academic skills. Whether working with a struggling reader, preparing for STAAR assessments, or challenging an advanced learner, Lindsay creates a supportive environment where students feel motivated to learn and grow. Outside of the classroom, Lindsay enjoys reading, taking long walks with her dogs, and continuing to create educational resources that make learning engaging and enjoyable.
Jazzmin O.
Jazzmin is a dedicated educator and behavioral health professional with a strong background in psychology and a passion for supporting students both academically and emotionally. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Texas at San Antonio and her Master of Science in Applied Psychology from Angelo State University, with plans to pursue law school in the future.
Jazzmin brings a unique, well-rounded perspective to tutoring, combining her academic training with hands-on experience in education and behavioral support. She previously worked as an After-School Care Teacher, where she supported students ages 5–12 with homework, enrichment activities, and skill-building in a structured and engaging environment. In addition, her professional experience in mental health and case management has strengthened her ability to connect with students, support diverse learning needs, and foster resilience and confidence.
She specializes in elementary and middle school instruction (K–8), including math, reading, and writing, as well as English Language Arts, psychology, and test preparation such as STAAR and GED. Jazzmin is particularly skilled at working with students who need additional support with focus, organization, and confidence, including those with ADHD or other learning challenges.
As both a graduate-level professional and a parent, Jazzmin understands the importance of patience, encouragement, and creating a positive, supportive learning environment tailored to each child’s unique personality and needs. She focuses on building strong relationships with her students while helping them develop effective study habits, strengthen foundational skills, and gain confidence in their abilities.
Families appreciate Jazzmin’s warm, approachable style and her ability to make learning both engaging and enjoyable. Outside of tutoring, Jazzmin enjoys spending time with her family, cooking, listening to music, and exploring the outdoors.
TheCarey L.
TheCarey is an experienced English educator and instructional leader with a proven track record of helping students strengthen their reading, writing, and critical thinking skills. He currently teaches 9th Grade English at IDEA Public Schools in San Antonio, where he helps students build strong reading comprehension, literary analysis, and writing skills while preparing them for STAAR End-of-Course exams. Since stepping into his current classroom mid-year, his students have already shown strong academic growth, including impressive gains on interim STAAR assessments.
Prior to returning to the classroom, TheCarey served in multiple school leadership roles, including Assistant Principal and Regional ELA Content Coach, where he supported teachers across multiple campuses, improved instructional systems, and helped raise student achievement. Earlier in his career, he taught in Harlem and the Bronx, where he built a reputation for making English Language Arts engaging, culturally relevant, and meaningful for students. His students have earned national recognition, including winning Best High School Podcast and Best East Coast Podcast through the StudySync curriculum.
TheCarey holds a Master’s degree in Special Education and has extensive experience supporting students with diverse learning needs, including those with ADHD, dyslexia, and students on the autism spectrum. He specializes in English Language Arts, writing, college essay support, ACT preparation, STAAR and Regents test prep, social studies, technical writing, and helping students develop stronger test-taking and study skills.
He also brings a unique creative perspective to tutoring through his dual bachelor’s degrees in Film & Video and Africana Studies, often helping students connect literature, writing, and history to real-world issues, media, and storytelling in ways that make learning more engaging.
Families appreciate TheCarey’s ability to challenge students academically while building their confidence and making learning feel relevant and enjoyable. His goal is to help students become stronger readers, writers, and thinkers both inside and outside the classroom.
Outside of education, TheCarey enjoys spending time with his wife and infant daughter, exploring San Antonio’s parks and restaurants, watching films, and cheering on his hometown Chicago sports teams.
Shauna K.
Helping students succeed is Shauna K.’s true passion.
Shauna has been teaching, tutoring, and helping students achieve academic success for more than a decade.
A California native, Shauna has a graduate and undergraduate degree in Biological Sciences from UCSD. She also has a TESOL certificate to teach English as a foreign language, and many years of in-person and online SAT and ACT coaching — which is her specialty.
Shauna is highly skilled in helping students excel in a wide range of subjects from science and math to language arts and Spanish.
She is an expert at helping all students learn (and master) executive functioning skills such as planning, time management, study habits, and effective study techniques (how to study). She believes that the confidence gained through these skills propel students forward and lay the groundwork for lifelong success.
When Shauna is not teaching or tutoring, you will find her hiking, biking, or camping the Rockies.