Richard M.

Richard Maloon has a proven track record in education. He earned his Bachelor’s degree (B.S.) in Elementary Education and later his Master’s degree in Education (M.Ed.) with a focus in Curriculum & Instruction. He has taught all grades 1 through 9, spending most of his time with grades 4 through 8. He taught for 14 years and served as a private school principal for 23 years. Mr. Maloon also had a career as a national certified consultant for MicroSociety, Inc., a successful, real-world school reform model. He was the consultant for many public schools in the southeast United States. He is very adept at teaching math, social studies, science, and English, and has been recognized for his creative approaches to teaching concepts and skills. He is considered by many to be a master teacher. He also was a school-wide program coordinator for implementing MicroSociety; his school was featured in many periodicals and on prime-time television. He has had an article published for a professional journal and has been a presenter at teacher conventions as well. Besides this, after school he has coached soccer, sponsored a chess club, and started a robotics tech club in many of his schools, taking teams to the finals in Lego Robotics. Mr. Maloon also enjoys traveling, being in nature, and learning more about neuroscience.

Rebecca V.

Rebecca Vogdanos is a licensed teacher holding professional education certifications in the states of Illinois and Florida. She earned a Master of Arts in Elementary Education from Northeastern Illinois University, and began teaching six years ago starting in Des Plaines, Illinois, and has been teaching in Sarasota County since August of 2024. She is a perpetual student and will next pursue an endorsement in reading and literacy in the fall of 2025.

Her love of education was realized in 2012 when her two children were little and she became involved in homeschooling cohorts in Chicago and neighboring suburbs. That is when she developed her teaching method—Constructivism, which emphasizes active learning and peer collaboration through exploration and real-world experiences, and builds upon prior understanding in a way that captures the interests of children.

She accepts challenges with vigor and has very effective strategies in reaching what sometimes seem to be impossible goals, proving that she successfully meets the needs of each and every student.

A few fun facts
● She has traveled the planet and has lived in Tunisia and Greece, which enabled her to find creative and successful ways to communicate with non-English speakers.
● She is an active member of the local community and practices
philanthropy daily with her children.
● She is adventurous and has been a leader of the Adventure Club at her children’s
school. This experience has enabled her to teach survival skills, provide necessary tools
for social-emotional growth, and how to critically think.
● Her life revolves around art. She and her family are very creative and incorporate art into
everything they do, from food presentation to interdisciplinary studies, and everything in between.

Dawn H.

Dawn is a seasoned 20-year veteran elementary level teacher for grades 3-8. She obtained her B.S. in Education from Northern Arizona University, her M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Phoenix, and her post-graduate educational leadership degree from Stony Brook, NY. She holds a professional Florida Educators License for grades K-6.

With over 90+ hours of mathematics training from the Intel Corporation, Dawn loves creating an inquiry-based model of instruction for students, regardless of one-on-one, small group, or whole-class settings. Her core belief is that learning should be scaffolded, purposeful, hands on, and exploratory in nature. Dawn utilizes songs, games, total physical response, art, on-line tools, and manipulatives to generate excitement in her classrooms.

Dawn’s hobbies include all things athletic, artistic and creative, and has a penchant for bodybuilding, personal training, and nutrition.

Rita Z.

Rita worked with students in the Sarasota County district school system for over 20 years as a middle school science teacher. With a gifted certification and extensive professional development experience in exceptional student education, she is well equipped to work with students of various abilities. In the classroom, Rita was able to connect with students, parents and the community and earned highly qualified evaluations by administrators year after year. Rita took a hands-on approach to learning science in her classroom, often taking students on field trips and creating meaningful learning experiences with interactive and virtual learning. In 2013, Rita was recognized for all of her achievements as the district middle school teacher of the year.

Rita has a master’s degree in STEM education from the University of South Florida and a bachelor’s degree in physics and astronomy, making her very capable of helping students succeed in all science disciplines. Rita completed her master’s thesis on how to develop notetaking and organizational skills in students that support students in reading and writing expository texts. After completing her master’s degree, Rita earned over 900 hours of professional development, focusing on differentiated instruction and integrating literacy into the core content areas.

Jennifer C.

Jen graduated from the University of Maine at Farmington with a Bachelor’s Degree in secondary education mathematics, and completed a Masters Degree in Online Teaching and Learning from Concordia University. Jen taught almost every subject available in high school mathematics and for the past two years tutors students preparing to take the SAT. She taught math for about 20 years! She is passionate about helping people and making meaningful connections that promote the desire for life long learning.

Outside of class, Jen works in Real Estate and has many hobbies including running, biking, swimming, lifting weights, reading, and spending time with family and friends.

Zoë M.

Zoë graduated magna cum laude from the University of Toronto, specializing in research psychology and minoring in English.
They graduated from York University with an MA in critical psychology, their thesis focusing on accessibility in undergraduate education.

Zoë’s passion is teaching and learning, and they have expertise in a variety of subjects. Most notably, they have been an SAT tutor for over ten years — tutoring 1-1, teaching intensive courses, designing lesson plans and curricula, training other instructors, and even writing an SAT Teacher’s Manual, which was sold to various test prep and tutoring companies, and which they still update yearly for personal use.

Zoë’s teaching style is reflexive, engaging, agile, and learner-centred, informed by their extensive knowledge of psychology and pedagogy, and enriched by their confidence in every student’s ability to succeed when given the right tools.

Donovan E.

Hello! My name is Donovan E. and I am excited to meet you. I recently moved to Miami from Houston, TX to continue my training in medicine. Aside from tutoring, I’m looking to see if the tacos here compare to back home so I will be accepting all recommendations. When I’m not enjoying local eateries, enjoying and playing music, and studying, you can find me continuing my passion for helping young minds master their skills in Math and Science. I have a love for these subjects and I truly enjoy helping students no matter where they are in their journey. Be it aiming to raise a grade or getting over the hump to truly master one of my listed subjects, I am confident that decade-plus experience as a private tutor will prove helpful on your journey. I’m looking forward to hearing from you and working with you.

Ruby S.

Ruby has a PhD in experimental medicine and a Masters in regenerative medicine. She brings over 15 years of experience as an educator and has worked with students in elementary school all the way to medical professionals. She has worked with students in an one-on-one format, small groups and large classes. Ruby engages with her students through virtual and in-person formats. Ruby also provides tailored support for ACT, SAT, and SSATs. She applies various strategies honed over a decade of experience in standardized test preparation to support and coach her students. With her tailored approach, her students gain the confidence to strategically tackle test preparation material and critical thinking skills to effectively apply their core knowledge.

STEPHANIE C.