Last month, four wonderful new counselors joined our Collegewise family. First, we’ve added two Los Angeles-area counselors with a long history of helping parents make sound educational decisions.
Patti Winkel
College Counselor
Pasadena, CA
Patti graduated from Connecticut College with a degree in theater. True to the liberal arts college ideal which espouses a well-rounded and relatively unrestrictive education, she took classes in child development, psychology, and French Literature while somehow securing approval to substitute Poets for Physics as her science requirement and avoiding mathematics entirely. After a successful marketing career which included launching her own educational marketing consultancy, Patti co-created KnowsyMoms, an online resource which provides parents with not only everything they need to help their kids be successful in college, but also advice and encouragement to help parents adjust to and embrace what Patti calls “staying connected while letting go.” Cheering for and supporting your college student from afar? Yes. Calling your student’s sociology professor to demand that the final be rescheduled to a later hour because 8 a.m. is just too early for him? No. It’s a balancing act, one that Patti and her site can help any parent master. An active volunteer with the South Pasadena School District for sixteen years while raising two boys and seeing them off to college, Patti was the first vice-president of programs for the South Pasadena High School PTSA and has won several PTA honorary service awards. She also takes acting classes on Tuesday nights and occasionally sings with the Golden Bridge Community Choir in Hollywood. She is not, however, able to throw or catch anything. Always the last to be picked in gym class, Patti embraces her athletic shortcomings and swears that if she ever pens an autobiography, it will be entitled, And You Get Patti.
Kirsten Hanson-Press
College Counselor
Los Angeles, California
Before joining Collegewise in July 2014, Kirsten was the executive director of the Parents Education League of Los Angeles, a non-profit organization that helps parents navigate the often bumpy road of school choice in Los Angeles. While education has been a lifelong interest, Kirsten also spent over a decade as a producer and production manager for the Disney Channel, Moxie Pictures and Lifetime Television, heading commercial and independent projects including the infamous final music video for Biggie Smalls. Needless to say, whether you need helping finding the right high school, college, or director for an iconic hip-hop artist’s latest video, Kirsten can expertly and patiently guide you towards the right choice. In fact, guiding has long been a talent of Kirsten’s—she recently got back in the boat (and on the water) as a crew coxswain and oarswoman with the L.A. Rowing Club after a 25-year hiatus from the sport. Kirsten says that the fact that she lettered in both crew and debate in high school is proof that she has always had a big mouth. After studying mass communications at Emerson College, Kirsten never stopped learning or studying and has devoured courses in film studies at the American Film Institute, early childhood education at UCLA and organizational management at Antioch University. A parent-educating, lifelong-learning, boat-guiding, entertainment-producing mother of two, Kirsten also enjoys hiking, adventurous road trips, and using her keen design eye to transform any space.
Our Northern California crew just keeps getting even better, this time with Marisela Gomez, director of our new office in Morgan Hill (within shouting distance of the Silicon Valley):
Marisela Gomez
Director
Morgan Hill, California
After earning a BA in sociology and three minors (ethnic studies, international studies, and Spanish studies) at Santa Clara University, Marisela launched what would become a 12-year career as an admissions officer and enrollment manager. While reading all those applications in the Santa Clara admissions office and spanning the state to give admissions talks to transfer, international, and high school families, Marisela also earned a master’s at Santa Clara in educational administration. When she decided it was time to work someplace other than the campus where she originally arrived as a college freshman, Marisela brought her deep admissions experience and passion for helping students to Collegewise in July 2014. Marisela says that she is an annual recipient of the World’s Greatest Mom award. Sure, it’s an award she assigns to herself and we haven’t actually seen a physical manifestation on the wall or in the trophy case, but her husband and two kids swear that the award is not only real and very richly deserved, but also takes the form of her beloved Lululemon jacket. How does Marisela so skillfully balance the demands of school, work, and family without ever seeming to run out of energy or enthusiasm? Coffee, preferably iced black coffee. And lots of it.
And finally, Collegewise is moving into North Carolina, land of Blue Devils and Tar heels, with our fabulous new director, Jenny Peacock.
Jenny Peacock
Director
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Jenny had what can only be described as a meteoric rise in the world of admissions. After a college internship in the financial aid office at her alma mater, Peace College (now William Peace University), Jenny moved into Peace’s admissions office first as an assistant director, eventually scaling the peak and becoming the director of admissions. After 12 years, thousands of applications, and too many admissions committee meetings to count, Jenny decided she wanted to spend all of her time doing her favorite part of the job—counseling students—and joined Collegewise in August 2014. Originally from the South, Jenny loves southern cooking and has very strong opinions as to the superiority of Eastern North Carolina barbecue over, well, every other kind of barbecue. It’s a vinegar/pepper base vs. tomato base distinction that apparently has sparked controversy and debate all the way to the highest levels of the North Carolina state legislature. Let’s just say that if you think all barbecue is the same, you could be wading into some deep vinegar and pepper with Jenny. But she might be willing to overlook any barbecue-based differences if you were willing to help her check off an item on her pre-age 40 bucket list—to go noodling (she’s yet to find anyone willing to join her in a quest to catch a catfish with her bare hands).
We just couldn’t be happier to have Patti, Kirsten, Marisela and Jenny with us. They’re already doing great work and helping families enjoy a more successful, less stressful college process.