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Tracy Baynes

CEO and Founder, ​STEP: Student Expedition Program

Tucson, AZ

Tracy Baynes is the Founder and CEO of STEP: Student Expedition Program (STEP College-Prep), a college access and leadership program for low-income Arizona high school students. Tracy received her doctorate in oceanography from Scripps Institution of Oceanography in 1993 and, after several years as a coral reef researcher, Tracy turned her full focus to teaching in 1996. In 2004, Tracy founded STEP’s College-Prep and Leadership Program with the focused mission of educating and empowering low-income Arizona high-school students to enroll in and graduate from college. To date, 96% of STEP’s College-Prep Program alumni are in college or have attained a college degree.

Carolyn Blair

Director of College Counseling, Sage Hill School

Newport Beach, CA

Carolyn Blair has worked in the field of education for over 30 years, with the last 23 years as the Director of Counseling Services for Clayton high school, a public school outside of St. Louis. Tracy is currently the Director of College Counseling at a private school in Newport Beach, California.

Lauren Cook

Jewish Community High School of the Bay

San Francisco, CA

Lauren Cook is the Dean of College and Gap-Year Advising at the Jewish Community High School of the Bay. Prior to joining JCHS, Lauren served as an Associate Dean of Admission at Mount Holyoke College. With over two decades experience in college admission, Lauren is a Past-President of the Western Association for College Admission Counseling (WACAC), part of the Fiske Guide to Colleges Counselor Advisory Group, and an active member of the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC), the Bay Area Independent School College Counselor (BAISCC) consortium, and the Association of College Counselors in Independent Schools (ACCIS). Lauren’s volunteer commitments have earned her the Mount Holyoke Loyalty Award and the WACAC Steve Hankins Award, and she is delighted to periodically share her college counseling expertise in NACAC’s Journal of College Admission and as a guest on ABC7 News Bay Area.

Adrian Flores

College Transition Coordinator, Carmen High School of Science & Technology: Southeast Campus

Milwaukee, WI

Adrian Flores, is a proud first-generation Latino male educator. Originally from Los Angeles, Adrian moved to Wisconsin in 2009 to attend Northland College, where he played college basketball. Adrian later earned his master’s degree from Cardinal Stritch University and is currently pursuing a PhD at Grand Canyon University.​

Shanté Hamilton-John

College Scholars Program Placement Officer, SEEDS - Access Changes Everything

Newark, NJ

Shanté is originally from Georgetown, Guyana but now lives in New Jersey. Shanté attended Wesleyan University for her undergraduate degree and is now getting ready for grad school. Since 2019, Shanté has actively worked to help students prepare and apply for college, including assisting with students’ first-year transitions.

Paul Harris

College Counselor, Tessellations School

Cupertino, CA

After nearly ten years at Alamo Heights High School Paul is now the new College Counselor at Tessellations School where he helps families navigate the college admissions process.

Kim Jackson

Director of Advising and Scholar Support, Lenfest Scholars

Wayne, PA​

Kim joined the Lenfest team in December 2020 and oversees the advising teams of partner schools in Franklin and Huntington Counties. Kim grew up in Chester, Pennsylvania and attended West Chester University, where she earned her bachelor of fine arts, in masters in higher education counseling and her certification in secondary school counseling. Kim has helped students with their college and career goals in for the last thirty years.  Kim worked exclusively as a college counselor for five years, then spent another ten and a half years working with a caseload of 300 high school students on personal and academic issues, helping them to create their postsecondary plans.

Miranda Herrera Johnson

Director of Program, SEO Scholars

San Francisco, CA

Miranda is a Latina first-generation professional and San Francisco native dedicated to supporting lasting change in the community where she was raised. Miranda is driven by her belief that change starts in one’s own home and community and her work with an early education nonprofit helped her discover her love for direct service mixed with developing adult learners early in her career. Miranda entered into college advising and success work over a decade ago with SEO Scholars San Francisco where she has helped to increase the scale of the program to four times its original size while maintaining a 100% four-year college acceptance rate.

Joe Walcott Lewis

Associate Director, Crimson Summer Academy at Harvard University

Cambridge, MA

Joe Walcott Lewis is the Associate Director of The Crimson Summer Academy at Harvard University, where he works with high-achieving, low-income high school students as they prepare for college and beyond. In this role, Joe oversees the college advising program as well as the academy’s budgetary, financial, and operational processes. Joe also serves on the teaching teams for Strategic Finance and Innovation and Justice: Developing New School and Community Strategies at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, supporting educators transitioning into leadership roles. A graduate of the Crimson Summer Academy himself (Class of 2009), Joe earned his bachelor’s degree in economics and history from Boston College and a master’s in education policy and management from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Joe is currently a doctoral candidate in Organizational Leadership and Learning at Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College and is a Certified Educator in Personal Finance.

Sarah MacCullum

Senior Director of College Counseling, Noble Schools

Chicago, IL

Sarah MacCallum is the Senior Director of College Counseling at Noble Schools, where she supports Noble Deans of College and campus leaders across 17 high schools with tools, resources, and strategic guidance to meet college access and success goals. With over a decade of experience at Noble, Sarah has developed systems, processes, and curriculum to ensure that Noble students have the opportunity to realize their postsecondary dreams and ambitions. Sarah is a proud graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and is passionate about advancing equity and multigenerational change through college counseling.

Jeff Makris

Director of College Counseling, Stuyvesant High School

New York, NY

Jeff has been in the college counseling profession for over 25 years in New York City public schools, serving as Director of College Counseling at Stuyvesant High School for the past decade. Through his work, Jeff has experienced the incredible diversity of New York City, meeting young people and families with a wide range of backgrounds, talents, and interests. Over the years Jeff has benefited from the professional development and networking opportunities afforded by organizations like National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC), New York State Association for College Admission Counseling (NYSACAC) and The College Access Consortium of New York (CACNY), and has taken on leadership positions within NYSACAC and CACNY.

Emily Mashal

School Counselor, Huron High School

Ann Arbor, MI

Emily Mashal has served as a school counselor at Ann Arbor’s Huron High School since August 2018 and brings 18 years of experience in education and school counseling. At Huron, Emily coordinates academic planning, college advising, and the school’s food pantry initiative, partnering with community organizations to ensure student access to snacks, groceries, and toiletries. Emily is passionate and dedicated to empowering students academically, socially, and emotionally. Emily holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan and a master’s in school counseling from Teachers College, Columbia University. Prior to her current role, Emily lived in Chicago and New York City, working as a school/college counselor and is a certified Spanish and Health teacher.

Zack Montez

Lead College Advisor, Denver Scholarship Foundation and Northfield High School

Denver, CO

Zack Montez is the Denver Scholarship Foundation’s Lead College Advisor at Northfield High School. Zack has worked in college and career advising roles for the past fifteen years after graduating from the University of Notre Dame with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. As a first-generation college student, Zack is passionate about empowering high school students, including their families and support systems, with the knowledge and tools necessary to meaningfully explore various post-high school paths. Whether students choose trade school, apprenticeships, or two/four-year college options, Zack’s goal is to help students reflect on what is personally important to them in order to make informed, best-fit decisions for their futures.

Jameel Moore

Associate Director of College Counseling, Phillips Exeter Academy

Exeter, NH

Jameel loves finding ways to connect with people: the common denominators that bring different people together are his favorite things in the world, whether it be sports, food, travel, or lived experiences. The profound impact past educators made on Jameel’s life has inspired and motivated him to build meaningful connections with students throughout his entire career.

Ian Shaw

President, Brewer Foundation

Dallas, TX

Ian Shaw is the President of the Brewer Foundation, where he leads the organization’s philanthropic initiatives focused on education. Before leading the Foundation, Ian practiced commercial litigation, labor and employment, and premise liability at Munsch Hardt Kopf & Harr, P.C.in Texas. Ian holds a BA in business administration from Roanoke College and earned certificates in marketing and public relations from Cornell University and New York University, respectively. Ian later earned his JD from the University of North Texas at Dallas College of Law.