I’m a veteran Catholic school teacher who was looking for a way to combine my love of learning with my gifts as an encourager and nurturer when I became an academic life coach. In December of 2015 I found out about academic life coaching from my nephew, a satisfied college-aged client of a coach in Philadelphia. After several days of research, I realized this was a great fit for me, and a way to use my background in education while empowering young people to be the best version of themselves. After training with the best in the field, I began coaching in the Akron, Ohio area, specializing in meeting the needs of clients grades 7 through college.
My background includes 16 years in the classroom, mostly teaching middle schoolers English and Theology. I also taught freshman English for six years and interacted with high schoolers of all grade levels as advisor or co-moderator of a number of extracurricular activities including Yearbook, Academic Challenge, and Science Olympiad. I think my passion for nurturing young people stems from my years as a coach of creative writing teams in the Power of the Pen Program, a state-wide competition for middle schoolers in Ohio. All this is rooted in 20 plus years as a professional writer, freelancer and PR professional.
I have been married to my husband for over 35 years. Together we have steered our two children (now grown) through the college application process and parented two Chinese exchange students, one of whom lived with us for two school years.
Education and Training
John Andrew Williams, Academic Life Coaching, LLC, ALC 1.0
Gretchen Wegner, Art of Inspiring Students
The University of Akron, Master’s with Licensure, Secondary Education, Integrated Language Arts
Kent State University, Bachelor of Science, Journalism
Click to read what Anna’s students and their parents are saying about what working with her is like.