Director of Candidacy Building
Jennifer graduated from Columbia University with degrees in both English and Jazz Studies. It was at Columbia that she fell in love with Ethnomusicology and pursued independent study on the connection between grief and music with the Ph.D program chair. Columbia exposed her to many new ideas and supported her in deepening her understanding of humanity. Her favorite moments in college include composing sound design for a theatre production of The Saliva Milkshake, interviewing the very musicians she studied, and taking such inspiring courses as Arabic Prison Writing and Applied Poetry. Jennifer has also taken courses in psychology, English and film at Trinity College Ireland, UCLA and NYU. She is an active filmmaker, performing artist and writer.
Jennifer has long worked in the field of education. She started coaching drama, with an intimate understanding of embodiment and the voice, and enjoys bringing that into her work with students here at Ivy Scholars to help build their confidence and prepare them for interviews. She helped assist the Emily Shane Foundation’s SEA program in its early stages as a mentor and worked as a second teacher and behavioral coach for kids on the spectrum at The Help Group School. She joined Ivy Scholars as a lead candidacy building mentor in 2020.
Jennifer mentors and helps oversee the Candidacy Building program and is a huge advocate of its benefits not only for the ease of college applications, but also for the long-term foundation it builds for our students. She prides herself on being an idea consultant for our students, helping them make connections between seemingly disparate interests, connecting them to the greater community and instilling the soft and hard skills necessary for success. There is great wisdom in laying the groundwork now, and she uses a whole-person approach to her work with each student.
It is with much joy Jennifer witnesses her students’ growth. Under her guidance, her students have initiated many projects, including:
Her students have also worked or studied with many organizations, including The Cooper Union, PAIR, CoLAB Arts, Child Advocates, NASA, AAYGC, TWRC, SCA, 7cups, Curious Science Writers, and UCSB’s Student Research Academy.
Fun Fact: Jennifer loves to climb big mountains. Her highest backpacking summit to date was 17,769 feet high, and her longest multi-pitch rock climb was 4,180 feet tall!
Alma Mater: Columbia University
Based In: New York, New York
“Attention is the key to transformation.” – Eckhart
Ivy Scholars is the leading educational consultant in Sugar Land, Texas, providing admissions coaching, test prep, and more to help students enroll at top tier schools.
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