My passion in helping students stems from the fact that I was once one myself, and not a very good one. College was a door to a new opportunity of learning. As soon as I became a college freshman, I saw a different world opening before my eyes. Today, I work with many diverse students in different scenarios: Pre-K to college level; foreign students needing to learn English for careers as well as scholastically; and SAT and ACT preparation for students seeking to get into college. The one thing that's common in these various scenarios is my passion to help students that are apprehensive to learn because they don't know what to do, and teach them how to break down a situation and discover for themselves how to study, learn, and find out to derive the answer for themselves. My Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Syracuse University and my Master's certificate in TEFL/TESOL from Learning Tutoring were not easy to obtain, However, that goal was worth it as they prepare me each day to to teach, interesting, diverse students, and assist them in achieving their educational goals. In addition to proven teaching experience, I have 30+ years' work experience in three different industries--banking, advertising, and hospitality. Since I am teach for a variety of accredited institutions composed of students of many ages and from diverse cultures and backgrounds, my subjects include, but are not limited to: English (verbal, written and phonics), literature, essay writing, SAT and ACT English and math, history, science, filmmaking (award winning filmmaker), acting (union actor--SAG, AEA), 2D animation, drawing, painting, and Adobe Creative Suite. My favorite subject to teach is English--phonics, verbal, reading, and literature. My teaching style is hands-on. I just don't stand or sit there and lecture. Lectures are boring. As my resume and other documents state, I have 30 years experience as a union actor in good standing. Much of this acting experience has been in improvisation and role playing. I bring a lot of role playing activities into my class, especially when I am teaching foreign adults who need to know English for their jobs/or if the relocated to the U.S. My lessons are based on the students themselves. They're tailored to student individual needs. We do a student scenario, say applying for a graduate degree scholarship. If they are employed in an English speaking environment, we might do something where they are interviewing for a promotion. My philosophy is all about the 'individual student's needs,' whether I am teaching a class of six students or one-on-one. Outside of the class, I am interested in kayaking, filmmaking, and writing scripts and plays.
