Mary Heaton (she/her) has been working with children in K-8 education for over sixteen years and has been teaching for eleven years. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood and Elementary Education from Temple University and a Master’s degree in Multicultural and Bilingual Education from the Universidad de Alcalá.

Mary realized her love for teaching in high school when she worked at a children’s center; her personal interactions with the children motivated her to pursue a career in education. Since then, she has taught in various bilingual classroom settings here in the U.S. and abroad in Madrid, Spain.

Mary’s greatest strength is her ability to understand and motivate students to become excited to learn. She is highly skilled at improvising in challenging situations; in fact, Mary has often found herself drawn to the students that other teachers have found to be “challenging,” because she knows they just need an extra level of attention and care to learn. Mary believes that early childhood is a critical time period to prepare young children to succeed in school and that great parent-teacher communication is key to any student’s success. She looks forward to working with you to help your child reach their potential!

Mary enjoys spending time with her husband, son, and daughter. She loves to travel — whether it’s finding new places to explore nearby or somewhere far away. You can also find her doing Zumba and yoga outside in her hometown.

Jacob Ginsberg (he/him) has been tutoring informally since he was young; he began tutoring professionally eight years ago. Since earning a degree in English from Brown University, he has worked with students on academic subjects ranging from middle school math to college level history and calculus. Jacob teaches Socratically and creates individual plans of action in dialogue with his ​students, inviting them to take ​control of their own learning. Jacob believes students should capitalize on their strengths while working to improve in the areas where they need his assistance.

As a tutor, Jacob collaborates with students and helps them build good habits and new levels of understanding. He can help students with their writing at every level: grammar, structure, syntax, and theory. As a math lover who struggled in high school English, he believes that anyone can learn to write and read at a high level. He’s passionate about interdisciplinary learning and enjoys working across the humanities and sciences. He works to cultivate a love of learning in his students.

Jacob has an MFA in Creative Writing from Temple University. In his free time, he writes fiction, reads for a literary magazine, cheers (and boos) at Flyers games, and walks his dog Isabel.

Garima Patel (she/her) is currently a veterinary student at the University of Pennsylvania. She completed her Bachelor’s degree in Bioengineering with a minor in Chemistry from the University of Pittsburgh. She has tutored various subjects and grade levels for the last six years, mostly focusing on mathematics and science. During her time at the University of Pittsburgh, Garima tutored for the Math Assistance Center, served as an undergraduate teaching assistant in the Biology department, and hosted a summer program for high school students interested Bioengineering.

As a future healthcare worker, Garima is committed to a lifetime of learning and hopes to share this enthusiasm through tutoring. Garima has a huge passion for STEM fields and encouraging young minds to pursue their career goals. With the right resources and motivation, students can achieve anything!

Garima believes that tutors are adult mentors as well. Her student-centered teaching style promotes engagement and active learning. Garima knows that students spend most of their time in lectures at school, so her lessons are a Socratic conversation with her students where she works to create an exciting learning environment.

In her free time, Garima enjoys traveling, doing jigsaw puzzles, playing board games, making bracelets, playing videogames, and taking her dog, Tinkerbell, to the park. She is a strong believer in self-care and mindfulness to maintain a sustainable school-work-life balance, and she hopes to model these behaviors for her students.

Erin Gleeson (she/her) has over seven years’ tutoring experience and currently teaches high school Algebra in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. She has a Bachelor’s in Geosciences from the University of Arizona and a Masters in Climate Sciences from the University of Bern in Switzerland. Erin has worked at the intersection of science and practice for over a decade. She has partnered with Nepali farmers, Peruvian herders, and diverse communities throughout the U.S. to build climate resilience through partnerships that integrate nature conservation with economic opportunities and social cohesion. Most recently, she worked to connect landowners throughout the Central Appalachians with the carbon market through sustainable forest management.

Because she understands the importance of critical thinking in solving our socio-environmental challenges, Erin enjoys helping students develop their college-readiness skills in areas as diverse as SAT/ACT, Algebra and Geometry, and AP Biology. Erin’s approach to teaching is strongly grounded in logic, evidence, and real-world examples. Erin loves how trivia about the natural world can unlock the secrets of math and science for her students. For example, she will teach students that bees use hexagons to make their honeycomb, because it’s the strongest and most efficient shape in nature. How cool!

Erin’s mindfulness practice is rooted in being active and aware outdoors. In her free time, she works on restoring the natural habitats of her northern Virginia home, plies her mostly green thumb in the garden, and cycles and hikes extensively. Erin is also a beekeeper: she maintains hives both at her home and at the Swiss Embassy in Washington, D.C.

Duaa Ahmed (she/her) is a veterinary student at the University of Pennsylvania. She received her BA at Boston University with a major in Cell and Molecular Biology & Genetics, and has been involved in multiple research projects ranging from microbiology to evolutionary mechanisms of social structure. Before coming to RTC, Duaa worked at the UPenn Weingarten Learning Center as a peer note taker, attending lectures and customizing tools to help special-needs students learn at their best capacity. As a gifted teacher, she tailors her tutoring similarly.

Duaa finds it extremely fulfilling to work with students of all ages and backgrounds, and she and has a wide range of teaching interests in subjects including chemistry, biology, algebra, geometry, precalculus, critical reading and writing, and academic skills. Duaa caters her teaching style to the learning needs of each student. She likes to start with a lot of structure, and then slowly encourage independence in her students as their confidence grows in learning.

In her free time, Duaa likes to hike, watch TV, try new restaurants, and travel. Some of her favorite adventures were in Puerto Rico, Sri Lanka, and Dubai. When traveling, Duaa loves to explore the local food and wildlife.

Emmaline Smith (she/her) first started tutoring informally in high school and became enamored with tutoring when she started teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) to elementary school students. She continued tutoring in college and graduated cum laude from the University of Michigan with a degree in User Experience Research and Design. 

Before coming to RTC, Emmaline worked as a Webflow Developer at Idea Lab and tutored Spanish independently. In addition, Emmaline has worked for companies based in Argentina and Mexico. These experiences have taught her how to better serve students coming from diverse backgrounds.

Emmaline transitioned to tutoring full-time because she found herself so invested in her students’ progress. She is passionate about tutoring because it allows her to connect with students, help them achieve their goals, and have fun learning in the process. Emmaline tutors a wide range of subjects from Economics to Math, but she especially loves tutoring Spanish and sharing her passion for learning and teaching languages.

Emmaline enjoys spending time outdoors, especially hiking and playing tennis. She has lived in Colombia and Spain, and her personal goal is to visit every Spanish speaking country. She is currently based in Mexico City, where she is learning salsa dancing and volunteering at a biosocial lab in her free time.

Bryce Raley (he/him) has been a professional academic coach to students of all ages for the past six years. Bryce graduated one year early from the University of Miami with a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science and Economics. He mentors classes of students at UM in applications of environmental sustainability. 

Bryce enjoys teaching students from elementary age to college level, and he loves helping students at all ages to achieve their potential. Bryce brings motivation, patience, and empathy to his work as he nurtures the skills, behaviors, and strategies that improve students’ academic and personal confidence. Because he teaches students the analytical and academic skills they need to succeed in college, he has helped hundreds of students to improve their grades and performance at school and in life.

Coaching other students became Bryce’s passion while he was in college, where he started his journey as an academic coach. He realized early on that students need more than just an expert tutor: they need a teacher, mentor, and coach who works to understand them and tailors his teaching style to their unique needs. Bryce’s is dedicated to igniting the strength that every student has within them. He believes that each student’s academic talents will be revealed when provided with the right environment and coach.

In his free time, Bryce enjoys surfing, skateboarding, writing music, and playing guitar.

Karim Bourenane (he/him) is a medical student at the California University of Science and Medicine near Los Angeles. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Neuroscience from Pomona College and  a Covid-19 Contact Tracing degree from John Hopkins University.  Prior to working at RTC, Karim spent his college years volunteering to tutor high school students, primarily in STEM subjects. He also provided college counseling and tutoring to low-income students. 

Karim’s favorite aspect of tutoring is watching his students become confident with material with which they previously struggled. Karim believes in meeting his students where they’re at and adapting his teaching style to maximize results. He’s really passionate about STEM, and especially Biology and Chemistry. Because of his own preparation for the MCAT, Karim can relate to his own students’  experience studying for high-stress exams. Karim understands that students need a foundation of mental health to succeed academically, and he often practices mindfulness with students in their lessons together.    

During his free time, Karim likes to be in nature, hiking, camping, kayaking, and meditating. He also loves to play soccer and video games. He would love to visit Antarctica one day.

Julia Adams (she/her) has been tutoring informally since she was in high school. She graduated from Washington and Jefferson College with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology, with minors in Mathematics and Education. Throughout her undergraduate career, Julia volunteered tutoring mathematics at a teen center, where she guided students in everything from fractions to calculus. Each light bulb moment, that “a-ha!” that indicates a student has connected the dots, is what continues to inspire Julia; she has continued to gain a deeper appreciation for tutoring in her five years working 1-2-1 with students.

Julia knows RTC’s teaching philosophy better than most: she was one of Miss Claire’s students, and she herself learned to beat the ACT on her journey to college. Her ACT achievement helped her earn her sizable merit aid at W&J. Julia brings this test-taker’s expertise and empathy to her work as an RTC tutor.  She’s our first alumna test prep tutor, and she’s our secret weapon!

Julia is passionate about teaching because she is passionate about learning. Every student brings new opportunities for Julia to learn along with them. Julia believes in Socratic teaching and understands that if a student can work through problems cooperatively with their tutor and explain how they did it, they build both their skills and confidence. Julia especially loves teaching mathematics because of its concrete answers, and biology because of its practical applications.

In her free time, Julia is an active artist and spends her free time painting, drawing, cooking, and spending time outdoors around her home in Pittsburgh, PA. Julia is a strong advocate for having a creative outlet to relieve stress in difficult situations and uses her creativity as a form of mindfulness.

Casey Burke (he/him) is a writer, tutor, mentor, and digital marketer living in West Philadelphia. Growing up as the oldest of four siblings taught him patience and provided a foundation for the mentoring efforts he went on to pursue. These included a summer job as a camp counselor and a role in his high school’s mentoring program for disadvantaged middle schoolers, both of which cemented a passion in him for helping children grow and find joy in working toward their goals. Casey knows that every child thinks differently, and as a tutor, he is determined to identify and cater to each of his student’s individual learning styles.

Casey earned a double B.A. in English and Cognitive Science from the University of Virginia, with a concentration in literary prose. After college, he started working as a paid search analyst for a digital marketing agency, where he consistently sought opportunities for teaching and mentorship. He was selected to participate in an externship program, and these teaching experiences drew him closer to a transition to education in earnest. Casey is a natural, kind, and intuitive teacher, and he has enjoyed tutoring RTC students in various subjects.

Writing has been one of Casey’s passions since he was old enough to spell. For Casey, any kind of writing is a form of self-expression: helping students improve their written work is ultimately a way to help them find a singular voice and build confidence, both on and off the page. In addition to writing, Casey teaches Spanish, Math, and U.S. History. In teaching, Casey relishes the challenge of zeroing in on an appropriate goal for each student, then developing a specific, long-term plan to make it happen. His interests range widely across subject areas, and for him there are few greater joys than putting in the time and effort to understand a new concept, whether it’s a Spanish conjugation, a polynomial equation, or the War of 1812. Casey aims to inspire this love of learning for its own sake in every student he teaches.

In his free time, Casey enjoys fiction, distance running, cooking, playing the acoustic and bass guitars, listening to his sizable record collection, and reading about philosophy and music.