Award-Winning ACT Reading Tutors
serving Salem, OR

I'm a strong believer that education can be fun, and address learning with a sense of humor and a positive attitude. My approach to learning tends to be very communication-based, and often driven by how the client I'm working with feels they learn best. As a result, I tend to provide structure and guidance in a more flexible learning environment.

Most ACT Reading mistakes come from mismanaging time across four dense passages, not from a lack of reading ability. Dylan teaches an active-reading method that prioritizes locating evidence quickly — tagging key claims, contrasts, and author tone as you go — so students aren't rereading entire paragraphs to answer detail questions. His 34 composite and 5.0 rating speak to how well this approach translates to real score gains.

Scoring a 35 ACT composite means Heather knows how to move through dense passages quickly and accurately — especially the Reading section's mix of prose fiction, social science, and humanities texts. She teaches students to identify what each question is actually asking before hunting for evidence, a habit that eliminates the most common timing traps. Rated 5.0 by students.

Hi, I'm Nic :) I have a Masters in philosophy and a Bachelors in computer science. I've worked as an educator for over a decade, thoroughly enjoy tutoring high school students, and can't wait to start working with you (or your student) towards persistent academic success! Feel free to reach out with any questions, https://linktr.ee/nickhh

I'm Owen! I was born and raised in Portland, OR, but I currently live in Rhode Island, where I'm working towards a Bachelor's Degree at Brown University. If there's one thing to know about me, it's that I love to learn, no matter the subject. Learning is a life-long process that can take you anywhere in life. But this doesn't mean it's always easy. It would be my privilege to help you overcome the obstacles you encounter on this journey.

Trained in philosophy at Reed College, Daniel reads dense, argument-heavy texts for a living — exactly the kind of material the ACT Reading section throws at students across its prose fiction, social science, humanities, and natural science passages. He teaches a question-first strategy that turns each passage into a targeted scavenger hunt rather than a slow, anxious read-through. Rated on a 33 ACT composite, his approach prioritizes efficiency without sacrificing comprehension.

The ACT Reading section gives students just over eight minutes per passage, which means raw comprehension isn't enough — you need a strategy for extracting answers quickly from dense prose. Marilyn, who reads voraciously across modern fiction and historical biography, teaches students to map each passage's argument structure before touching the questions. Her approach turns the dual-passage comparison questions from the section's biggest time sink into reliable points.

I am applying to medical schools to attend Fall 2016 and I like to play basketball, go backpacking and volunteer with youth in my free time.

Before tackling any passage, Nikita teaches students to spend 30 seconds previewing the questions — flagging line references, "main purpose" prompts, and detail questions — so the first read-through becomes a targeted hunt instead of passive absorption. Her pre-med coursework at USC means she's comfortable with the natural science passages that trip up many test-takers, and she applies that same analytical rigor to prose fiction and humanities, where tracking an author's shifting tone paragraph by paragraph keeps inference questions from feeling like guesswork. Her 33 ACT composite and 5.0 student rating back up the strategy.

I am a recent graduate of the University of Colorado at Boulder. I received my Bachelor of Science in Chemical and Biological Engineering with a minor in French. During my time at CU, I studied abroad in Paris, as well as being a Teaching Assistant for Chemistry, Biology, and Fluid Mechanics for engineers and often helped my peers with homework. During the summer and fall I teach percussion for a local high school marching band. While I tutor a variety of math and science topics, my favorite subjects are chemistry and physics, as I love exploring the ways in which the world works. Education is of the highest importance to me, and I wish to share this passion with my students. In my spare time, I like to read suspense novels, play a variety of string instruments, and play Legend of Zelda.

I am open to helping students practice speaking, reading, and writing without any judgment. I am open to helping you learn Chinese or Japanese no matter where you are in the learning process.

I am a soon-to-be college graduate of Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon! I will have a BA in English, with a minor in Theatre Studies. At Lewis & Clark, I have taken classes in Postcolonial Literature, Poetry Writing, Film & Literature, Milton, British Literature, & Modern American Literature. I am a candidate for Honors in the English department, and am finishing up my undergraduate thesis on Octavia Butler and Toni Morrison. I want to use my experience to help your student get excited about and engaged with literature! I love essay writing, and essay structure and editing is one of my favorite things to work on.

Speed is what makes ACT Reading hard — four dense passages in 35 minutes means students can't afford to reread. Laura teaches active-reading shortcuts like annotation strategies and question-type triage that cut down on wasted time without sacrificing comprehension. Her 32 ACT composite and 5.0 rating speak to how well the method translates to real score gains.

Most of ACT Reading comes down to time management: four passages in 35 minutes leaves almost no room for re-reading. Paul teaches a passage-mapping technique that identifies the main argument and key details on the first pass, so students spend their time answering questions instead of hunting for evidence they half-remember.

A government major at Harvard, Richard spent his coursework doing exactly what the ACT Reading section rewards: rapidly digesting competing political arguments, identifying an author's central claim, and distinguishing stated evidence from implied conclusions — skills that map directly onto the social science and humanities passages. His perfect 36 ACT composite means he's navigated every passage type under real testing pressure and knows which time-management habits actually hold up when the clock is running.

The ACT Reading section punishes students who read passively — four passages in 35 minutes requires a deliberate strategy for extracting main ideas and locating evidence fast. David, who scored a 36 composite, teaches a structured approach to each passage type so students spend less time rereading and more time answering confidently.

I am a rising sophomore at Case Western Reserve University studying engineering. I have taken most high-school level standardized tests, and have scored consistently above the 95th percentile. I have tutored small groups of students throughout high school, and also have experience as a private tutor. Outside of the classroom, I enjoy playing Ultimate Frisbee with my college club team.

I am currently pursuing a Bachelors of Science in Aerospace Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology. I am also a graduate of the high school International Baccalaureate Program. I have informal experience tutoring high school physics, but am most passionate about tutoring students for the ACT standardized test, having had extensive experience preparing for standardized tests throughout high school. I am eager to aid students in boosting their scores before their upcoming college applications, an important milestone in many students' lives. In my free time, I also enjoy playing tennis.

I am passionate about helping students with math, science, test prep, and more! As sophomore undergraduate at Brown University studying Mathematics and Biophysics, I am well experienced with many topics. I received a perfect 36 on my ACT, so I am very confident with test taking.

I am excited to help anyone who might need it!

The ACT Reading section isn't really about reading — it's about quickly locating evidence and matching it to answer choices under a brutal time constraint. Nicholas, who earned a perfect 36 composite, teaches a systematic passage-attack strategy that prioritizes where to look over how fast to read, cutting down the guesswork that costs students points in the final minutes.

Most ACT Reading struggles come down to time, not comprehension — four passages in 35 minutes leaves almost no room for re-reading. Danielle scored a 36 composite and teaches an active-reading method that captures main idea and tone on the first pass, so students spend their time answering rather than searching. She's especially effective at demystifying the paired-passage and natural science sections that tend to slow students down.

I am currently a student at Duke University studying Biomedical Engineering and Economics. Just a little bit about me and some of my interests. Some of my favorite academic interests include memoirs and modern classics. I think Catcher in the Rye is still one of my all time favorite books but Percy Jackson, a modern classic, is up there too. Beyond academics, I take great guilty pleasure in watching TV shows such as Westworld, Sherlock, How I Met Your Mother, and even The Bachelorette when I'm at a low point.

Tracy's strategy for ACT Reading starts with the dual-passage comparison questions, which she considers the section's biggest point opportunities once students learn to read structurally. Instead of re-reading entire passages, she teaches a targeted annotation method — marking tone shifts, key claims, and concession language on the first pass so answers come faster on the second. Her 36 composite reflects how well this approach scales across all four passage types.

I am currently a fourth year medical student in Indianapolis. I completed my undergraduate education at Indiana University Bloomington, where I majored in Biology and Spanish. I also completed two minors in Mathematics and Chemistry. While at IU, I worked for the Department of Mathematics and Department of Spanish. I also worked as a Peer Tutor for the IU Athletics Department, tutoring in several subjects including statistics, chemistry, physics, and Spanish. I graduated from college with a 4.0, and I entered medical school shortly thereafter. Since coming to medical school, I have excelled in all of my pre-clinical coursework, and I currently rank in the Top 20% of my class. I feel very comfortable and confident tutoring other students in a variety of subjects from math and science to Spanish. I like to think that the same techniques I have used to excel in all phases of my education can be easily adapted to other students and help you achieve your academic goals, just as I have!

I'm a recent college graduate with degrees in Biological Sciences and Russian from Ohio University. During my time there, I tutored students in a variety of subjects, including biology, chemistry, and Spanish. In addition, I worked as both a peer advisor and teaching assistant, which gives me insight into the learning strategies and study skills that students need to succeed. As a tutor, I like to focus on doing actual problems with students because it is the most effective way to immediately identify their strengths and weaknesses and to address them. In my free time, I like to lift weights, read books, and spend time with my friends.