SAT, ACT, College Prep Programs | Zoffness

Diagnostic SAT/ACT Tests

SAT/ACT Classes

Enrichment Classes

Personalized Approach

Our personalized approach has consistently increased student’s acceptance rate into some of the top schools in the world. Students who were enrolled in Zoffness College Prep in 2021 showed an average super-scored SAT improvement of 180 points and an average super-scored ACT composite improvement of 7 points!

Our Approach

Our Team

Average super-scored SAT improvement 2021

in scholarships have been earned

Average super-scored ACT composite improvement 2021

Customized

We design our own instructional materials, which emphasize concept development and the most effective test-taking strategies.

Practice

We provide a comprehensive online performance analysis database for students to develop their test-taking abilities, and improve their specific areas of weakness.

Experience

Our team is composed of inspired, skilled specialists with a proven track record of success.

Confidence

We design our programs to instill confidence in each and every student, providing the preparation required for exceptional performance.

Laura Nicolae

ACT & SAT, Math and Economics Specialist, AP Calculus, AP Statistics, AP Microeconomics and Macroeconomics, AP Spanish

Laura Nicolae graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University, where she earned a B.A. with Highest Honors in Applied Mathematics and Economics and won several awards for her senior thesis. She is currently a Ph.D. student in Economics at Harvard University and Harvard Business School, and she previously worked as an economist on Wall Street. In high school, she scored in the 99^th percentile on the ACT and SAT composites and scored a 5 on 14 AP exams, including Calculus AB and BC, Statistics, Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, and Spanish.

SAT/ACT Classes

Enroll Now

Enrichment Classes

Enroll Now

Diagnostic SAT/ACT Tests

SAT/ACT Classes

Enroll Now

Enrichment Classes

Enroll Now

Personalized Approach

Our personalized approach has consistently increased student's acceptance rate into some of the top schools in the world. Students who were enrolled in Zoffness College Prep in 2021 showed an average super-scored SAT improvement of 180 points and an average super-scored ACT composite improvement of 7 points!

Our Approach

Our Team

Average super-scored SAT improvement 2021

in scholarships have been earned

Average super-scored ACT composite improvement 2021

Customized

We design our own instructional materials, which emphasize concept development and the most effective test-taking strategies.

Practice

We provide a comprehensive online performance analysis database for students to develop their test-taking abilities, and improve their specific areas of weakness.

Experience

Our team is composed of inspired, skilled specialists with a proven track record of success.

Confidence

We design our programs to instill confidence in each and every student, providing the preparation required for exceptional performance.

Kelvin Leung

ACT, SAT, Math Level I and II Subject Tests, Biology E/M and Chemistry Subject Tests

Kelvin Leung, who received a perfect score on the math section and near-perfect score on the verbal section of the SAT, equips students with the skills to improvise, adapt, and overcome. His goal is not just to arm his students with multiple skills to tackle problems, but also to help them cultivate the intellectual creativity and positive attitude that will allow them to succeed on test day. Kelvin has seen firsthand the shortcomings of the canned materials and impersonality of the large test prep companies. His own pedagogy, on the other hand, aligns perfectly with the focus on innovation and student-centered education that Zoffness College Prep offers. Kelvin Leung is a Captain in the United States Marine Corps Reserves, where he currently serves as a High Mobility Artillery Rockets Systems (HIMARS) Platoon Commander. His experiences beyond test prep allow him to offer his students unique insights into the kinds of habits and preparation required to perform well under pressure. He holds a Bachelors of Science degree in General Biology at Stony Brook University, and is currently pursuing a degree in Respiratory Care Therapy.

Andrea Coady

Math Specialist, SAT/ACT, Math Level I & II Subject Tests, AlgII/Trig

Andrea Coady graduated with honors from Mercy College in Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. where she received a B.S. in Mathematics and a M.S. in Mathematics Education. She holds New York State teaching certifications in Secondary Mathematics, Mathematics for Students with Disabilities, Generalist for Students with Disabilities, and Teaching English to Students of Other Languages. She has seven years of experience teaching high school mathematics and special education in New York City and Westchester County. In addition to teaching a variety of regents level mathematics courses, Andrea has experience working individually and with small groups of students to increase their mathematics scores on the ACT and SAT for the past eight years. She has helped students of various levels of ability to improve their study skills, learn test taking strategies, and equip them with the confidence needed to achieve success on standardized exams.

Daniel Riseman

Daniel Riseman is a New York State certified teacher (grades 7-12) in Math, English Language Arts, Biology, Chemistry, Earth Science, Physics, and Social Studies and has an Advanced Certificate in Special Education. For the past 20 years, Daniel has been customizing lessons to prepare students for the SAT, ACT, SAT Subject Tests, ISEE, SSAT, and TACHS. As a member of the National Association for College Admissions Counseling, Daniel assists students with every step of the college admissions process. He has helped students get admitted into MIT, Harvard, Princeton, University of Chicago, Dartmouth, and University of Pennsylvania, among many others. He also helps college students with the transfer process and graduate school admissions. Daniel has served as a featured education writer and contributor for Psychology Today, The Fiscal Times, Yahoo Finance, Fox News, The Week, Education News, MSN Money, Institute of Sport, STEM Education Digest, The Awakened Wire, Special Needs Digest, Entertainment News, and LifeZette. He has also served as an on-air educational expert for EWTN.

Dylan Spangle

ACT/SAT Specialist, AP and Regents Biology, Subject Tests

After graduating from Brown University with honors as a Biology major, Dylan spent over a year conducting synthetic biology research for his master’s thesis at NASA Ames Research Center in California. During his time in California, he also provided guidance for undergraduates in the joint Stanford-Brown iGEM synthetic biology competition team. Their project ultimately received a bronze medal in the international competition. As a result, Dylan received his Masters of Science degree in Biotechnology from Brown University. Since then, he has had great success as an ACT/SAT tutor, helping students improve their grammar, reading comprehension, and mathematics skills, in addition to tutoring Biology. He combines his scientific expertise with the high-level reading and writing skills required of a Brown graduate. Dylan is dedicated to helping students build confidence in themselves by developing individually-tailored learning strategies.

Dr. Coretta Tam

Chemistry, AP Chemistry, Chemistry Subject Tests

Dr. Coretta Tam received her B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh and her Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from Yale University. She has taught all levels of chemistry courses from middle school to post-college, including Boston University, Quincy College, and Roxbury Community College in Massachusetts. She recently retired from teaching and chairing the Science Department at Newton Country Day School in Newton, MA. Dr. Tam is an award-winning master teacher of both students and teachers of chemistry. She has received the “Teacher Excellence Recognition Award” from the Department of Education in Washington, D.C., the “Theodore William Richards Award for Excellence in Teaching Secondary High School Chemistry” from the Northeastern Section of the American Chemical Society in Boston, and has been inducted into the American Chemical Society’s “Aula Laudis Society.” As a College Board consultant since 2004, she has conducted workshops and summer institutes for teachers nationally and internationally, on both AP Chemistry and Pre-AP Science Vertical Team. She had also served as an AP Chemistry Exam Reader for several years. She is passionate in helping students elevate chemistry and math scores.

Helen Cespedes

SAT, ACT, SSAT, ISEE, SHSAT, AP French, Subject Tests

Helen is an experienced private tutor who grew up in Boston in an academic household. After graduating from Barnard College magna cum laude with a BA in Comparative Literature, Helen went on to receive her MFA in acting from the Juilliard School. She is currently a teacher, working actor, and writer. For more than 6 years, Helen has enjoyed guiding her students from New York’s top high schools and middle schools to build the skills they need to achieve their goals in the classroom and on college readiness assessments. She teaches all sections of the SAT and ACT, as well as the SSAT, ISEE, SHSAT, AP French and several SAT subject tests. Helen curates her practice material and curricula to fit the needs of the individual student, and she helps her students cultivate critical thinking skills that will serve them beyond the exam and through their college careers.

Liba Vaynberg

SAT, ACT, Biology Subject Test, College Essays

Liba graduated with distinction from Yale with degrees in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology and International Studies. She then received her master's from Columbia University. She has taught at Xavier University, and has years of experience working with students in various private and public schools and universities in New York. She is a passionate tutor, who is devoted to building confidence in her students in and outside the classroom.

Michael Ritacco

Mathematics Specialist, SAT/ACT, Math Level I and II Subject Tests, AlgI, AlgII/Trig Regents.

Mike graduated with a B.A. from SUNY Purchase in Mathematics and Computer Science. He graduated from Lehman College with two master's degrees in Mathematics Education and School leadership. He also holds a post master's certificate in District Leadership focusing on curriculum design and progressive instruction from Manhattanville College. Mike taught high school mathematics for 10 years in the South Bronx and East Harlem. Changing the lives of New York's most struggling and underprivileged students, Mike truly found his passion and excelled at helping students close the gaps. After much success, Mike became a city-wide math coach and worked with teachers one-on-one to help improve instructional practices and make mathematics more relevant for students. Wanting to make a larger impact, Mike became the Director of Mathematics for a school district in NYC consisting of 24,000 students in over 50 schools. Currently Mike is the Supervisor of Math and Science for Port Chester Public Schools. His love for teaching and helping students continues to fuel his passion for education. Mike believes in making math meaningful and that all students can achieve greatness.

Caiden Leavitt

SAT/ACT Specialist, AP Language, AP Literature, Literature Subject Test, and College Essays

Caiden graduated from Cornell University with a B.A. in English Literature. Upon graduation, she worked at the prestigious Windward School which specializes in language based learning disabilities, where she was intensively trained in PAF (Preventing Academic Failure) and TBWS (Teaching Basic Writing Skills). Since then, she has worked for several years with students of all ability levels on standardized test prep. Many of her students have gone on to earn scores that were above their goal score and many have also scored in the 99th percentile. She also specializes in College Essays and has helped many of her students get into the college of their choice. She believes that test prep is a skill that can be learned and does not set any limits on what her students can achieve!

Robyn Steiner

History Specialist, U.S. & World History SAT Subject Tests, AP History

Robyn Steiner holds a B.A. in English and Political Science from SUNY Buffalo where she graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa. Robyn received her J.D. from Cornell Law School, cum laude, and finished her post-Masters Certification in Education from Manhattanville College. After teaching numerous history courses in various Westchester high schools with success, she became a proud founding staff member of Bronx Community High School in the South Bronx for students who read and write below grade level. She currently teaches Global and U.S. History and provides individual tutoring to students in preparation for the New York State Regents Exams in U.S. and Global History.

Alyssa Dembek

Classroom ACT & SAT English Specialist

Alyssa Dembek holds a B.S. in Secondary Education: English and Communications from Pennsylvania State University and a M.S. in Literacy from Long Island University. She has been teaching English 11 and English 11 Honors at New Rochelle High School for nine years, and electives such as Creative Writing, World Literature, Shakespeare, and College Reading. In addition to regularly integrating SAT and ACT preparation into her curriculum, Alyssa equips students with the skills necessary to be successful on the NYS Common Core English Regents. She helps numerous students, who have a range of ability levels, with their college applications and conducts workshops for college essays. As the head coach of the girls Varsity volleyball team since 2011, Alyssa has enjoyed a great deal of success motivating students to reach their full academic and athletic potential.

Erin Ott

SAT/ACT Reading/Writing Specialist, PSAT, SHSAT, TACHS, ISEE

Erin Ott graduated with a M.A. in English Literature, and dual major B.A. in Creative Writing and Psychology, from Hofstra University. Erin teaches composition and literature at the collegiate level, and has worked with both university and community college students. She has been helping middle and high school students score higher on various standardized tests for the past decade. Erin’s passion is to help students build academic confidence and succeed in their college application process. She firmly believes that all students are different, and works diligently to help her students uncover which test-taking strategies apply best to each of them. As a former rowing coach, and captain of her college varsity rowing team, Erin is well-versed in the benefits of self-motivated hard work, and strives to help her students embrace this practice.

Jack Canfora

SAT & ACT English and Reading Specialist

Jack Canfora, SAT & ACT English and Reading Specialist, is an award-winning playwright, writer and educator, whose background includes a Summa Cum Laude degree from Hofstra University. Jack has 18 years of experience teaching AP Literature to high school students in both urban and suburban environments. Having scored in the 99th percentile on the Verbal section of the SAT, Jack has been an SAT and ACT tutor for 28 years, achieving great results for all levels of students. He is a passionate believer in working together with students to discover the best ways they learn individually. Among his recent non-academic accomplishments are two successful Off
Broadway productions of his plays, the publication of his plays Jericho and Poetic License, and the 2016 Webby Award for Best Writing for his web series The Small Time. Most recently, his play Fellow Travelers opened at the Bay Street Theater in 2018 to rave reviews and is slated to go to Broadway in 2019.

Peter O’Byrne

Mathematics Specialist, SAT & ACT, Math Level I & II Subject Tests, AlgII/Trig

Peter O’Byrne graduated magna cum laude from Georgetown University and earned his B.A. in Mathematics and Economics. He received an M.A. in Secondary Education from National-Louis University. Peter has nine years of experience teaching high school math beginning in Chicago, IL at Bogan High School, and for the last seven at KIPP NYC College Prep High School in the Bronx. In addition to teaching math at KIPP, Peter also teaches AP Microeconomics and coaches football. He is a member of the Master Teacher Fellowship as part of Math For America.

Alexandra Trow

SAT & ACT Specialist, SHSAT, ISEE, AP exams,

Alexandra Trow is a double Yale graduate (B.A., M.F.A.) with 99th percentile SAT and ACT scores, who loves working with students to make standardized testing more fun, engaging, and rewarding. Originally from Colorado, Alex has helped hundreds of students achieve substantially higher scores on the SAT, ACT, and AP exams, among several other tests. Alex is passionate about listening to students and working with them to create customized learning plans that translate into ease and comfort in what can often be a stressful environment; Alex knows what it’s like to perform under pressure: when she is not helping students achieve their academic goals, she is a working actor in New York City.

Ben Zoffness

President & Program Director

The founder of Zoffness College Prep. He holds a B.A. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and received his M.B.A. from Fordham University. Ben began tutoring students 15 years ago after mastering the SAT and ACT strategies required to score in the 99th percentile. Since then, he has helped thousands of students maximize their academic performance with confidence. After developing his own unique software to help students identify various areas of weaknesses, Ben has been able to save valuable time for his students, while reducing the cost for his clients. His company provides classroom and individualized instruction to the community, with a focus on innovative solutions to allow students to grow personally and professionally. Ben works with students in the classroom and on an individual basis to prepare for the SAT, ACT, Mathematics Subject Tests, and a variety of additional standardized tests. His motivation is continuously fueled by celebratory phone calls and emails from his clients sharing that they gained acceptance into their top collegiate choices, which is often paired with merit-based scholarships. Visit the testimonials page to read more about the impact that Mr. Z and his team have had on students from Westchester, N.Y.

SAT/ACT Classes

Enrichment Classes

Diagnostic SAT/ACT Tests

SAT/ACT Classes

Enrichment Classes

Personalized Approach

Average super-scored SAT improvement 2021

in scholarships have been earned

Average super-scored ACT composite improvement 2021

Why Zoffness?

Customized

Practice

Experience

Confidence

Laura Nicolae

SAT/ACT Classes

Enrichment Classes

Diagnostic SAT/ACT Tests

SAT/ACT Classes

Enrichment Classes

Personalized Approach

Average super-scored SAT improvement 2021

in scholarships have been earned

Average super-scored ACT composite improvement 2021

Why Zoffness?

Customized

Practice

Experience

Confidence

Kelvin Leung

Andrea Coady

Daniel Riseman

Dylan Spangle

Dr. Coretta Tam

Helen Cespedes

Liba Vaynberg

Michael Ritacco

Caiden Leavitt

Robyn Steiner

Alyssa Dembek

Erin Ott

Jack Canfora

Peter O’Byrne

Alexandra Trow

Ben Zoffness