IvyBoost Welcomes Our New Tutors to Our Team!
IvyBoost would like to welcome our new tutors who have recently joined our team! Need tutoring for ESL or chemistry or another class subject? You can call 510-656-6800 to see how IvyBoost can help you.
Tutor, Michael Zhai
Michael is a poet and writer, with a Bachelor’s degree in Comparative Literature from UC Berkeley and a Masters in English / Creative Nonfiction at Mills College. He is also a TESOL-certified ESL teacher who has taught English to non-native speakers in China, Spain and the United States. He currently teaches college writing and ESL at California College of the Arts.
Michael believes in the value of the humanities in deepening our understanding of ourselves, of others and of the world we share. His philosophy of teaching writing may be summed up as follows: “If you can think, you can write. I try to get to know each student personally, learning the unique way their mind works, and finding the writing style that is natural to them.”
Besides his skills in language and writing, Michael is also an experienced SAT tutor. He scored in the 99th percentile on the SAT, including perfect scores on the verbal and writing sections of the test.
Tutor, Arnold Ha
Arnold began formally tutoring students in 2011 and has tutored students for 3 years. He started by reviewing Algebra I material for junior high students in Hopkins Junior High school, slowly progressing to more advanced subjects such as Biology, Chemistry, and Organic Chemistry. Arnold believes that the distinct and unique qualities of every individual student add perspective to academia as a whole. Due these differences, students often are stronger in particular subjects and weaker in others, depending on their innate reasoning and mindset. In this regard, Arnold strives to tutor with an emphasis in identifying a student’s strengths and developing a personalized approach to academia through these strengths with the student, such that the student will not need to rely on a tutor. He hopes that students not only improve in the subject at hand, but also gain confidence in their own academic abilities.
Arnold was a valedictorian from Mission San Jose High school as well as a National Merit Finalist and with an AP Scholar’s Award. He has a 5 on AP Biology, Physics C, and Statistics. He graduated from UC Berkeley with a degree in Molecular and Cellular Biology-Biochemistry. Arnold is currently preparing for medical school applications while serving as a research assistant in the Atabai Lab at UCSF and as an activity therapist assistant for On-Lok Lifeways. In his spare time, Arnold enjoys attempting to create fancy desserts and playing tennis.
Arnold offers tutoring for Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics at the SAT II subject test level and at the AP exam level. In addition, Arnold can provide tutoring for SAT I Mathematics as well.
Tutor, Nathan Chan
Nathan is a recent graduate of University of California, San Diego with a Bachelor of Science in Pharmacological Chemistry. Nathan is a firm believer that success is founded upon having a positive attitude, hard work, and a bit of ingenuity. His motto is the statement, “I think, therefore I am”, by the philosopher Rene Descartes. His own life as both a student and a teacher has reflected how powerful the words “I am” can be.
As a student, Nathan exemplified the characteristic of hard work in achieving success as he improved his 3 mile time in Cross Country Running from 22 minutes to 16 minutes. He was also awarded the Eagle Scout rank in his Boy Scouts activities for his leadership and service in the community. Upon graduating from Mission San Jose High School, he was awarded the “Above and Beyond Community Service Award”. Nathan enjoys serving and helping others. His motivation to serve others makes him an excellent and uplifting teacher. He has a diverse teaching experience from tutoring SAT, chemistry and biology in California to holding seminars and teaching classes as a missionary in Australia. His experiences with teaching people from all walks of life makes him well equipped to tailor lessons to help and motivate students to be life-long achievers.
His “can do” attitude and personal philosophy of “mind over matter” has led him to seek out Pharmacy School after recently graduating from UCSD, scoring in the 97th Percentile on the PCAT (Pharmacy College Admission Test).
