Jeffrey E-L.
Kelly B-R.
I am a 26-year veteran K–12 Reading and Language Arts teacher with a Master’s Degree in Elementary Education and a specialization in Language and Literacy from the University of Miami.
Over the course of my career, I have worked as both a classroom teacher and a private reading coach, supporting neurotypical and neurodivergent learners who need targeted support to become confident, fluent readers and writers.
As an accomplished Youth Literacy & Learning Specialist, I provide one-on-one and small-group coaching to strengthen foundational reading skills—including phonemic and phonological awareness, decoding automaticity, vocabulary development, and text comprehension. My approach is structured, supportive, and rooted in evidence-based practices.
My goal extends beyond improving reading proficiency: I aim to help students enhance their executive functioning, organizational, and social-emotional learning (SEL) skills. These tools support focus, reduce anxiety, and build the academic confidence and competence students need to thrive.
Jacob M.
Jacob is currently working on earning his PhD from the University of Rochester. Having graduated from BSU in 2018, he celebrated by cultivating his love of nature on a cross-country camping trip across the lower forty-eight and Alaska. The last seven years, he’s spent pursuing his other passion, teaching. Working as an Adjunct Professor and TA at the University of Rochester, he has enjoyed learning to adapt the curriculum to his students’ individual needs.
Valery D.
Valery is a current student at the University of Miami, where she is pursuing degrees in Economics and Health Science. With four years of experience working in tutoring centers, Vale brings a strong background in supporting students across elementary and middle school subjects, along with high school English and Science. She has extensive experience working with children ages 8–12 and is CPR certified. Born and raised in Miami, Valery is known for making learning fun and engaging, helping students enjoy their work and build the confidence they need to excel. Outside of tutoring, she loves exploring new cafés around the city and going on runs.
Maria S.
Maria is an experienced educator who specializes in helping students build strong academic skills, confidence, and effective learning habits. She has taught across elementary and middle school and brings deep expertise in reading, writing, vocabulary development, and academic language growth.
Maria’s tutoring approach is centered on how students learn best. For example:
- Clear and achievable learning goals
- Explicit instruction with guided practice
- Reading comprehension strategies that make texts accessible
- Writing routines that strengthen structure, clarity, and organization
- Vocabulary practices that support deeper understanding
- Academic language supports such as sentence frames, thinking routines, and modeled responses
- Ongoing progress monitoring to celebrate growth and adjust instruction
Her students consistently make strong progress, and her classroom achieved the highest STAAR pass rate in her school (2023–2024). This success reflects her commitment to purposeful planning, high expectations, and meeting students exactly where they are.
Maria brings extensive experience in curriculum design to her tutoring, having created writing units, interdisciplinary lessons, and language-based supports that help students access challenging content. She uses this background to tailor every session to a child’s individual needs, strengths, and goals.
Although Maria is biliterate in English and Spanish, she uses this expertise only when helpful. Her understanding of how language functions in learning benefits all students—whether monolingual or multilingual—by strengthening their reading, writing, and communication skills.
Across all roles, Maria is recognized for her collaboration with families and communities, her strategic instructional planning, and her commitment to ensuring every student has the language, skills, and confidence to succeed.
Outside of teaching, Maria enjoys spending time with her family, relaxing with her dog, and staying active. She brings the same warmth, patience, and encouragement from her home life into every tutoring session.
Sandra M.
Sandra holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Sciences from the University of South Florida and brings a strong academic foundation to her role as a tutor. For the past three years, she has worked with students ranging from Pre-K to college, teaching subjects such as English, chemistry, organic chemistry, and various math courses.
Sandra’s unique experience spans early childhood education and college-level tutoring, giving her a versatile and adaptive teaching style. She takes pride in making complex topics approachable and believes in creating a supportive, engaging learning environment tailored to each student’s needs.
She recently graduated in May 2025 and is currently pursuing a nursing degree at Nova Southeastern University. Sandra is passionate about helping students build both confidence and competence in their academic journeys. In her free time, she enjoys dancing, staying active, and spending time with friends and family.
Kyle H.
Kyle is a primary English educator and aspiring film professor with more than six years of teaching and tutoring experience across multiple classrooms, workshops, online platforms, and subjects. While he has been pursuing his masters degree in education at National Louis University, he has also been supporting grades 9–12 as a permanent substitute teacher at Hinsdale South High School. Kyle also has led screenwriting, creative writing, and public speaking sessions for Cardinal Filmworks, a student owned and ran film collective at Ball State University (his alma mater). Finally, after his undergrad, he also tutored poetry, Spanish, photography, and videography for learners of all ages with Varsity Tutors as one of their Creative Writing Experts. His style tends to center on building up confidence and problem solving skills through lessons that connect his students’ work to their interests. Creativity is a core tenet of his and because of that he loves to design personalized, engaging sessions that balance creative freedom with structured feedback so that each student grows as both thinker and creator. Because of this more creativity-focused approach, crafting relationships with my students is paramount to me. Learning about their lives and helping them succeed is just as important to me as their academics. Kyle is a lifelong reader, film buff, devoted sci‑fi and fantasy fan, bass guitar player, and avid Chicago & New York sports fan (Cubs/Sox Mets/Jets).
A. Garza
Howdy! My name is Ms. Garza and I have been working in education for close to 6 years now. This is my 5th year teaching and I have experience in working with all grade levels, from pre-k to 11th grade. I am currently an AP English Language/English 1 teacher and taught middle school Social Studies for 4 years. One of my favorite things about teaching is helping students achieve that “a-ha!” moment and getting them to reach that next level in their learning. I enjoy building connections and learning more about my students, as I firmly believe that kids want to learn from people they enjoy being with. I’m looking forward to this next chapter of helping students one-on-one and to possibly working with yours!
James H.
Upon graduating from college, James began teaching at the St. Ann’s School in Brooklyn, and has taught in the humanities for over 20 years. While he has taught middle schoolers and adults in a variety of settings, Mr. Hamilton has mostly worked in private secondary schools, offering classes in World History, U.S. History, and other subjects. He earned his B.A. at Harvard College in European History, and later, two Masters Degrees (Arts, Philosophy) in Medieval European History with a minor in Renaissance Humanism from Columbia University. In the course of his historical studies, Mr. Hamilton also studied Art History and European languages including German, French, Spanish, and Latin.
Mr. Hamilton remains an enthusiastic student and teacher of history, a challenging, beautiful, and constantly evolving discipline which embraces every aspect of human endeavor.
In his spare time, Mr. Hamilton cooks, reads novels, plays chess, and folds paper, with particular admiration for the beautiful origami models of Hideo Komatsu.
Jennifer W.
Jennifer W. brings three decades of experience as a civics cheerleader and a history hype woman. She is committed to building students’ critical reading and writing skills by exciting their interest in history and government. She has taught at the high school and college level, including honors, dual enrollment, and Advanced Placement classes. She also loves encouraging students to express their own stories in the college essay process, and to discover their own strategies for academic organization.
Jennifer holds an undergraduate degree in American Civilization from Brown University, and advanced degrees in education and American history from New Jersey City University and Pace University. In her spare time, she is usually reading, visiting museums, or (poorly) singing show tunes.