About

Paths to College Readiness

I founded Write Start Prep to help students accelerate their college readiness through test prep and essay coaching.  I have a great deal of experience sitting down with students who are strong, average, or indifferent readers/writers and helping them vault into the 700+ range on the SAT R&W or dig deep and write a genuine, heartfelt college essay that highlights their personality and experiences.

From the PSAT in 10th grade to the SAT and ACT in grade 11, I help students develop skills-based strategies for the Reading and Writing Modules.  And when seniors begin their Common App to apply to college, I help them find their voice, tell their story, articulate their goals, and make it memorable.

Before founding Write Start Prep, I had the privilege of 15+ years as an English professor and high school teacher in Los Angeles, New York, and Philadelphia.  The fundamental values and methodology of teaching continue to inform my approach to test prep and college essay coaching: developing student-centered lessons, building on each student's strengths, and developing strategies for continued learning.  But at Write Start Prep, I also get the chance to help students realize their own strengths and a) develop a test prep strategy that maximizes them or b) build a college essay around them.

One recent challenge I've set for myself is to keep teaching's student-centered focus while also creating resources for students that are affordable and broadly accessible. The SAT + PSAT Video Guides and the College Essay Video Guides are my first efforts to meet that challenge. And, very soon, I'd like to do the same for ACT.

Whether online or in-person, Write Start Prep is about building students' confidence and ability as test-takers and college applicants. It's about helping students achieve their full potential as readers and writers, gaining insight into themselves and the power to convey that insight persuasively through writing.  Students with these skills have a bright future awaiting them, a future that can start right now with Write Start Prep.