Supervisory Team

Katie Barzee, SHRM-CP, is Operations Director at Organizational Tutors. She is a Certified Professional by the Society for Human Resource Management. She is a graduate of the South Carolina Governor's School for Science and Mathematics and Duke University where she earned a B.A. with Distinction, magna cum laude, in Earth & Ocean Sciences and Minors in Environmental Science & Policy and French Studies. She is a member of Phi Beta Kappa.

Her professional experience includes three years as a Litigation Paralegal at Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz, two and a half years on the Investment Team at a Midtown hedge fund, and several years running her own business management consultancy practice. A dancer at heart, Katie teaches Zumba and group fitness classes at local gyms and at the invitation of other groups. Katie also directs Operations at OT’s sister company Dwellness In-Home Psychological Services PLLC.

Samantha Fair is a New York State professionally certified educator, former school administrator, and early learning consultant with over 15 years of professional experience working with children, parents, and educators. Samantha received her MA in Early Childhood Education from Teachers College, Columbia University in 2010 and later joined Organizational Tutors in 2015 as an executive function coach. In this role, she utilizes her extensive background in progressive pedagogy to help her students gain crucial executive function skills, develop a growth mindset, and maintain their love of learning by feeling more confident at school. In 2018, Samantha became Organizational Tutors’ Program Director, working closely with Anna Levy-Warren to ensure the smooth functioning of the professional network and acting as a resource for tutors, supervisors, and families. Samantha approaches her work from a holistic perspective, taking into account a child and family’s full system: academic, social, emotional and even nutritional (as a certified child and family health coach).

Julia Niego holds a BA in Behavioral Neuroscience and an MS in Neuroscience and Education from Columbia University/Teacher’s College, the country’s first integrative graduate program to link educational theory with cognitive neuroscience research. In 2007 she co-founded a private preschool in Brooklyn, New York, and spent the next eight years developing and teaching progressive curricula and working school-wide as a developmental support specialist. Since 2012 she has worked as an Organizational Tutor and consultant, supporting children in preschool through fourth grade in building executive functions, a growth mindset, and strong academic selves.

Bari (Scheckner) Hillman attended the University of Pennsylvania, where she majored in Biological Basis of Behavior, and then went on to receive her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology (Health Emphasis) from Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, Yeshiva University. She has worked for Organizational Tutors since 2016.

As an Organizational Tutor, Bari tailors interventions to maximize clients’ progress, awareness of barriers, and sense of self-efficacy. Her strength-based approach highlights students' intrinsic motivations to foster rapport, confidence, independence, and increased understanding of the learning process. Similarly, Bari’s approach to supervision utilizes a problem-solving and team-based approach that supports tutors in working effectively with families, schools, and other supports and maximizes students’ success.

Robert (Bobby) Cox Jr. earned his Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University. There he specialized in neuropsychological testing of children and adults, in providing bilingual and bicultural therapy, and in investigating and working towards the integration of physical health and mental health. Bobby holds an MA in Clinical Psychology from Columbia University and a BA in English Literature and Hispanic Linguistics, with a Minor in Psychology, from the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

Bobby has taught Spanish and English literacy to children in grades PK-8 in New Orleans through Teach for America and has also taught in New York City magnet elementary schools. Bobby integrates his experience as a classroom teacher and as a psychologist-in-training to tailor tutoring to the unique needs of each student, attending to psychological, biological, and academic factors that influence a student's ability to excel in educational settings.

Bobby supervises NYC-based tutoring and supervises or coordinates supervision of all tutoring in New Jersey.

Megan Gaffney is an educational therapist who works with high school, college and graduate school students to help them to effectively address the challenges that stand in the way of optimal learning. In her ten years as an organizational tutor and executive functioning/academic coach, she has employed a strength-based approach, building students’ confidence while simultaneously teaching and fine-tuning the skills that will lead to academic independence and deeper intellectual engagement. Megan employs her warmth and humor to create trust and genuine rapport with her clients, enabling them to effectively address issues including executive dysfunction, organization challenges, writing and reading weaknesses, memory deficits, and processing and attentional issues. Megan has worked with students with a range of complex neuropsychological profiles, including, but not limited to, ADHD, dyslexia and reading impairment, and processing issues. Megan holds a certificate in Educational Therapy from the University of California, Riverside. She is also currently pursuing her third advanced degree in the Masters in Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program at the College of William and Mary. She has a BA from the University of Pennsylvania in English and Theatre Arts and an MFA in Classical Acting from George Washington University and the Shakespeare Theatre.

Elizabeth (Liz) Geiger earned a Ph.D. from the Counseling Psychology department at Teachers College, Columbia University. She has extensive training and experience working both clinically and educationally with individuals with learning disabilities, executive functioning difficulties, as well as more generalized academic struggles, which she brings to her work with Organizational Tutors. Throughout her academic tenure, Liz has focused her research on understanding the lived experiences of students with learning disabilities/differences and how these experiences are linked to psychological distress such as anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem. She recently completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Action Potential, where she developed expertise in neuropsychological evaluations for students with learning difficulties and provided individualized remediation planning to optimize learning.

Liz is trained in the Wilson Reading System, which targets areas of phonological awareness, spelling, and reading comprehension. She previously worked at Montefiore Hospital’s adult learning center where she taught individuals with severe dyslexia how to read and conducted neuropsychological testing batteries to provide specific treatment recommendations. In addition, Liz uses her experience as a psychologist to understand how mood symptoms can interfere with academic success and provides an integrative psychological approach to her work with students.

Liz’s approach with clients is also informed by her lived experience of struggling with and overcoming challenges posed by learning disabilities. She brings a unique perspective to this work, as she understands the importance of cultivating these skills on both a professional and personal level. In her spare time, Liz enjoys painting, reading, fashion, traveling, and going on hikes with her dog.

Sarah earned her Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University. She has an extensive background in neuropsychological assessment and experience working with individuals with learning and executive functioning difficulties across the life-span. Sarah specializes in reading differences and is trained in the Wilson Reading System designed to improve phonological awareness, reading comprehension, and spelling. She has worked with elementary through high school age students as well as college-age adults. In both her individual and supervisory roles, she takes an empathic and collaborative approach that integrates multicultural and feminist principles. Sarah tailors her interventions to each individual and their unique style to help them build confidence and realize their potential. In her free time, Sarah enjoys non-fiction writing, photography, and quality time with family over a cup of Yemeni tea.

Sarah provides executive functioning and literacy tutoring and provides supervision to NYC-based tutors.

Amy Strekas has over 18 years of experience as a special education teacher, speech-language pathologist, and private tutor. She is a New York State licensed Speech-Language Pathologist and a certified Teacher of Students with Speech and Language Disabilities (TSSLD) with a bilingual (English/Spanish) extension. Having grown up in a Cuban-American bilingual household, Amy is very passionate about dual language development. She earned her undergraduate degree in Psychology from Wesleyan University and her master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Maryland, College Park.

As an Organizational Tutor, Amy understands that true change occurs when she has earned the trust of her clients. She utilizes an individualized approach to help students with their planning, problem solving, and organization skills. Amy has experience with a wide range of learning challenges, including dyslexia, ADHD, auditory processing deficits, and autism spectrum disorder.

Jenny Brenner graduated magna cum laude from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a BA in International Relations-Political Economics. A native New Yorker, Jenny returned to NYC to earn an MA in Secondary Education from Hunter College and a Master of Social Work degree from New York University. For over fifteen years, Jenny has been addressing students' academic and emotional challenges, working both in the independent school setting and as a private tutor. Jenny began her career as a teacher at an independent school dedicated to small-group instruction and remediation, shifting eventually into the realm of clinical social work. In her various roles as a middle school psychologist and high school learning specialist, she blended her expertise to help students succeed academically, while cultivating confidence, autonomy, and healthy expectations. Using her Orton-Gillingham training, Jenny employs multi-sensory strategies to teach phonics and strengthen younger students' phonological awareness, spelling, fluency, and reading comprehension.

Jenny supervises Organizational Tutors’ expanding network of coaches based in Greater Los Angeles.