Biography

I have been tutoring professionally for almost two decades, starting when I was still in high school and continuing while I attended Thomas Aquinas College in Southern California. I started with a focus on K-8 students and special education, and my practice has evolved over time to include a wide variety of subjects, from algebra and the SAT to AP English and college essay writing. I have been part of AJ’s Los Gatos team for many years and also enjoy serving as a team leader, mentoring and training my fellow tutors and sharing our love of learning.

At Thomas Aquinas, I earned a Bachelor’s degree in liberal arts, double-majoring in philosophy and theology and minoring in science and mathematics. The classes there are conducted according to the Socratic method and are centered around a curriculum of the Great Books, as it is those works which have most shaped Western civilization. My time in this discussion-based classroom setting still informs my approach to tutoring. I want my students to feel not only confident in what they know but also comfortable asking questions and exploring new information.

No two students will learn in the same way or at the same pace, and I truly enjoy working to find the particular method that reaches each individual student best. I have worked with students across a wide spectrum of learning styles and also have experience helping those diagnosed with dyslexia, autism, ADHD, and OCD.

Outside of tutoring, I have been involved in twenty theater productions over the years in several capacities, including acting, music, composition, lighting and stage effects, production, and directing. (I directed two full-length Shakespeare productions while in college: The Tempest and Othello.) I also enjoy handicrafts, such as making jewelry or woodworking, and listening to kpop.