Tomer graduated from Wesleyan University with a degree in Philosophy. Later he earned his MBA at the University of Pennsylvania. Before founding ESC he worked on Wall Street and was the China country manager of a publicly traded US company. He is the father of three children, and when he is not carefully reviewing essays he can be found playing with his children.
Meet Tomer Rothschild
Stacy is a graduate of Wellesley College, where she studied Religion and Political Science. Several years later she received her MBA from the University of Chicago. Prior to founding ESC she was a research associate at Harvard Business School and a management consultant with Katzenbach Partners. Stacy is grateful that she discovered the world of college counseling upon moving to Beijing. She loves helping students tell their personal stories and learn how to be more compelling writers.
Meet Stacy PalestrantBill comes from the high desert of New Mexico, where he received his Bachelor’s degree in English and Philosophy at University of New Mexico. He received an MA in Humanities and a PhD in English at University of Chicago, where he studied human interactions with and through technology. Bill has taught classes on science and technology studies, British and American literature, and visual culture.
He has worked with high school students from around the world, helping prepare them for college-level classes, as well as helping students prepare for and apply to graduate school. One of the things Bill most enjoys is working with students who are expanding their writing abilities at the same time they are pursuing their intellectual and personal interests. When he is not working with students, Bill enjoys talking about movies and books with friends, writing stories, and taking care of his pets.
Björn Jóhann graduated with honors from University of Chicago, studying Psychology, Cinema Studies, and Human Rights. His psychology research studied how people’s moods affect their conversations, which he developed at the International Center for Decision Research. He presented his lab’s research at the largest TEDx conference in the Midwest. He won grants to study Mandarin at Shanghai’s Fudan University and History at Jerusalem’s Hebrew University. Björn developed a passion for teaching persuasive writing skills as captain of his Mock Trial team. He also has experience with SAT test prep with the service IvyBound and is passionate about helping students reach their full potential through writing.
Apart from education, Björn enjoys marathon running and hiking with his extended family in Iceland.
Deirdre is a graduate of Haverford College, where she majored in the History of Art with a particular focus in architectural history. At Haverford, she was a staff member of the college’s Women’s Center, and she was involved extensively in the Office of Admission. She was awarded a grant by Haverford’s Center for Peace and Global Citizenship to complete a summer internship in Berlin, Germany and spent another summer researching the politics of nationalism for the Department of German.
Before joining ESC, Deirdre worked as an Admission Counselor for Drexel University and Mills College, where she reviewed thousands of college applications. At ESC, Deirdre enjoys helping her students gain access to institutions that will nurture their potential and expose them to life-changing opportunities. In her spare time, she is an avid hiker who enjoys reading history and trying different street foods.
Cameron holds a BA from Wesleyan University and an MFA in writing from Indiana University. She has taught writing at Yale, Indiana University, and elsewhere, and for the past ten years has helped students apply to highly selective colleges. A former Marketing Communications Director in a private equity firm, Cameron also spent two years as Writer-in-Residence at the Ernest Hemingway Foundation of Oak Park, IL.
Her hobbies include writing, songwriting, playing guitar, and reading. Her book of poetry, Some Perfect Year, was published by Shearsman (UK) in 2016. Cameron stays connected to Chinese culture through her two young-adult daughters, whom she adopted as babies from China. She lives in Chicago, her hometown.
Catherine has been involved in education and college advising since 2005. She has four years of international admissions experience as a Senior Assistant Director of Admission at Vassar College, where she recruited and evaluated applicants from China, East Asia, and the Pacific Rim.
She has also served as an admission counselor at her alma mater, Fordham University, where she focused on recruiting first-generation college students from New York City. Beyond the application, Catherine is excited to help her students build upon their executive function skills through time management, organizing school breaks, and college research.
Cathy Shufro has taught writing at Yale and Wesleyan universities and for Yale’s English Language Institute. She serves as a Bass Writing Tutor at Yale College, where she works one-on-one with students on academic papers and application essays. In addition, Cathy has been the on-call writing consultant for the Yale World Fellows program, which brings leaders from all over the world to the university.
Cathy writes for magazines including the Yale Alumni Magazine and Johns Hopkins Public Health magazine. She is also a photographer and has traveled widely in Asia. Cathy graduated from Brown University.
Carolyn has specialized in international higher education for nearly 30 years: in admission at Brown University, education abroad at Wesleyan University and the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, area studies and scholarly research at New York University, and professional training and development with USAID-Chile.
Carolyn earned a PhD in International Education at New York University with a dissertation on public intellectuals in Chile’s transition to democracy, a dual MA in International Development Education and Educational Administration & Policy Analysis from Stanford University with a thesis on intellectuals and sociopolitical change in Central Europe, and a BA in History from Brown University. Bilingual in Spanish, Dr. Sorkin first fell in love with international education during a semester in Toledo, Spain, and looks forward to helping her twins study abroad in 2025-26.
Cierrah was born and raised in Philadelphia. She completed her undergraduate degree at Villanova University, where she obtained her BA in Political Science. During her undergraduate studies, she studied abroad in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She worked closely with her sociology professor to present at the Mid-Atlantic Undergraduate Research Conference. After graduating, Cierrah was chosen to join the selective teaching program, Teach for America, and taught for 3 years in Washington D.C.
She then moved to New York to attend Teachers College, Columbia University, where she obtained her MA in Sociology and Education. At Columbia she served on the Student Advisory Council, where she worked to host events and solve student concerns. She also served as a research assistant with the Center for Court Innovation. At ESC, Cierrah is eager to apply her wealth of experience to helping students develop their social emotional skills and as well as their interests. She enjoys building relationships with students while helping them to grow into the best version of themselves.
EJ Mitchell is a Questbridge scholar and a graduate of Amherst College, where he majored in Asian Languages and Civilizations with a concentration in Chinese language and contemporary history. At Amherst, EJ worked in the Admissions Office as a telementor and served on the new student Orientation Committee. EJ also studied abroad in Beijing through IES’s intensive language program at Beijing Foreign Studies University and worked for IES after graduating as the head resident advisor, managing residential life and student affairs.
Prior to joining ESC, he was a veteran teaching fellow and Dean of Students for Breakthrough Collaborative and taught middle and high school at a top independent day school in Ohio. He is a member of the inaugural Project Pengyou Leadership Fellows cohort and the organization’s executive committee. With years of experience in teaching and cross-cultural communication, EJ is passionate about mentorship and guiding students through the processes of self-discovery and storytelling.
Emily is from Houston, Texas, and graduated from Davidson College with a degree in Political Science and East Asian Studies. She spent the fall of her junior year studying abroad in Shanghai, and spent her senior year completing a fellowship in the Office of Admission of this selective U.S. college.
Emily has interned with the World Affairs Council of Houston, during which she created resources that enable Texas educators to teach their students about important world issues. Emily is eager to pursue her interest in higher education in China, as well as work with ESC’s brilliant students. In her free time, Emily enjoys reading science fiction and fantasy books and learning new board games.
Greg is a New York City native and a graduate from Brown University with degrees in comparative literature and German studies. In addition to managing the weekly newspaper at Brown, he played in several bands and began translating German literature. Greg moved to Berlin after graduation on a Fulbright Grant, a prestigious and highly selective research grant, to work with a linguistics research group.
Prior to joining ESC, he spent two years as a private tutor, focussing on creative and critical writing. In his free time he’s often riding his bike or checking out film screenings.
Haleigh graduated with honors from Tufts University where she studied Chinese, Entrepreneurship, and Peace and Justice Studies. She is a Questbridge Scholar and recipient of the Honos Civicus Award for her leadership in promoting sustainability, philanthropy, and peaceful US foreign diplomacy. At Tufts, Haleigh enjoyed performing with the Chinese dance troupe Wuzee, interning for startups, and mentoring students. Haleigh also spent a summer volunteering as an English teacher in Qinhuangdao and a year in Taiwan as a NSLI-Y Scholar, conducting award-winning research on Taiwanese students’ English learning perspectives. Post-graduation, Haleigh taught at a Vietnamese college as a Princeton in Asia Fellow.
Haleigh is passionate about leveraging her international education experience to empower ESC students to explore their intellectual curiosities and personal growth. Haleigh enjoys studying Asian languages and exploring cultures through food and dance.
John was born and raised in Northern Virginia. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa with Highest Distinction. While at UVA, he studied history and Arabic, and worked as an Arabic language tutor. He went on to the University of Chicago where he received his master’s degree in Middle Eastern Studies with a focus on Turkish language, culture, and history.
He also won numerous summer grants to study at universities across the Middle East and Central Asia. Following his time in Chicago, he spent two years in Turkey as a Fulbright English Language Teaching Assistant. John loves helping students develop their academic passions, critical thinking abilities, and public speaking skills. In his free time, John enjoys reading, going on hikes, and trying out new recipes. He is especially passionate about language learning and hopes to add Mandarin to the list!
Pelin has also been working as a concept developer and content writer at a Los Angeles-based art collective producing works at the intersection of architecture, multimedia art, and artificial intelligence. The collective’s immersive and interactive projects have been exhibited in numerous countries, including Germany, France, US, Canada, Mexico, Turkey, Italy, China and South Korea. Pelin is originally from Istanbul and she is an established fiction writer in Turkey. In her free time, she loves jogging, visiting museums and traveling.
Peter grew up in the Chicago suburbs and graduated from the University of Chicago, majoring in History. Throughout all four years of college, Peter was involved with the Neighborhood Schools Program as a teaching and office assistant. In addition to his work in Chicago, Peter has completed a copy-editing internship at Academia Sinica in Taipei and an internship at ESC in Beijing (before he became a full-time ESC consultant). In his free time, he enjoys playing badminton and video games.
Rosemary Jones is an Australian who graduated from the University of Adelaide and taught in secondary schools before moving to the United States where she lectures in writing at Yale. In addition, she tutors as a Bass Writing Tutor for Yale College, helping individual students with their papers. She has taught for the Yale English Language Institute, as well as the University of Adelaide. In the summer, she teaches for the Warrior Scholar Program, a non-profit organization that assists military veterans transition to college.
She received her MFA from Queens University of Charlotte, North. Rosemary writes fiction and non-fiction. Her stories have appeared in a range of literary journals. She recently won Alligator Juniper’s 2015 national prize for non-fiction.
Sydney is originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota. She graduated from Cornell University (BA) and from the University of Oxford (MSc) with distinction. Throughout her academic career, Sydney was involved in a variety of extracurricular clubs and volunteer organizations, most of which focused on bettering the lives of students of all ages and backgrounds through after-school programs and peer mentor groups. She was also dedicated to academic research and is familiar with both quantitative and qualitative research methodology.
At Cornell, she worked in a biomedical lab that studied Alzheimer’s Disease, and while at Oxford she researched national-level policy changes and their impacts on the education system in China. At ESC, Sydney hopes to use her background to help students realize their full academic potential and give them the tools necessary to compete in the global marketplace. In her free time, Sydney loves traveling, reading, spending time outdoors, and drinking coffee!
Amanda Guo comes from the beautiful province of Jiangsu. She received a Bachelor’s degree in Linguistics and Communications from the University of Syndey. After graduation, Amanda worked as a counselor at an international student center. She is well experienced in helping international students study abroad. She also holds the CELTA certificate (Cambridge Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults). Before she joined ESC, Amanda worked in a large English teaching institute in Beijing. At ESC, she is mainly in charge of communication with parents and students, interviewing new students, and helping parents communicate with counselors.
Louis Von grew up in Ningxia Autonomous Region and received his bachelor’s degree in Business English Language from Xi’an Fanyi University. Louis brings to the Recruitment Team a rich experience in student life management, as he helped American undergraduates succeed while studying in China prior to joining ESC. An avid traveler, Louis enjoys exotic food and good drinks, but in the kitchen, he remains faithful to cooking according to his hometown flavor.
Lily is a bilingual and multicultural individual with many years of international working experience. She has worked in both the UK and China, has experience working at one of the famous English language educational organizations in Beijing, and has a good understanding of both Chinese and American education systems. As a Parent Liaison, Lily coordinates with the counselors to communicate with parents, updates parents about their children’s applications, and arranges meetings for counselors and students to ensure successful college applications.
Experienced in cross-cultural communication, Allen has lived and studied in Australia, and is passionate about travel and sports. He focuses on American undergraduate and graduate admission, and has extensive experience with the differences between Chinese and American education, student life, and career development.
As a parent liaison, Allen is gret at communicating and problem-solving, sa well as sharing student progress and parent nconcerns, in order to help students submit strong, successful college or graduate-school applications.
Melissa graduated from the University of Ulster and has worked in education for over three years. Prior to joining ESC, Melissa worked at an English training agency and enjoyed teaching children from the ages of 3 to 12. As a Parent Liaison, Melissa coordinates with counselors to build a bridge of communication with parents, updates parents about their children’s applications, and arranges meetings for counselors and students to ensure successful college applications.
Pingli graduated from Beijing Normal University with a master’s degree in Linguistics and Applied Linguistics. She has been working in education for more than ten years and is very familiar with American education systems and American college culture. As a Parent Liaison at ESC, Pingli coordinates with counselors to communicate with parents, updates parents about their children’s application, and arranges meetings for counselors and students to ensure successful college applications.
Tommy has been working in the education industry for 9 years and has extensive experience in teaching English and applying to universities. As a Parent Liaison, he is responsible for assisting counselors to ensure that students’ college application process goes smoothly, communicating directly with the parents regarding the students’ application status, arranging and coordinating meetings between counselors and students.
Yiying is bilingual and multicultural working experience. She graduated from University of Houston in the major of higher education management and worked in both U.S. and China campuses. She earned rich experiences by serving freshmen of top Chinese universities in the international organizations and obtained good understanding of both American and Chinese cultures. As the Parent Liaison, Yiying coordinates with counselors to communicate and update parents about student’s application, and arranges meetings for counselors, students and families to ensure successful college applications.
Hi! My name is Esther and I’ve been working in the education industry for 6 years. I love doing exercises and reading when I’m free.
As a parent liaison at ESC, I’m responsible for communicating with parents about student’s application progress, answering parents’ questions about application, and helping families get success! I’m always here to help and support you, and you are welcomed to come to me for any questions!
Mina is bilingual with many years of multicultural work experience in the education and training industry. She has a good understanding of the difference between Chinese and American cultures, is familiar with the college application process and cares about the growth of every student. As a Parent Liaison here at ESC, Mina aims to ensure the communication between counselors and parents go smoothly, provides support to families as they need it, and ultimately sees students succeed in their college applications and grow to be successful college students.
Neal is originally from the city of Beijing. He received a bachelors’ degree in architecture from the University of Idaho. After graduation, he worked as an architect for one year before transitioning to ESC, where he works as the digital media and event coordinator. During his free time, he likes to play basketball and explore restaurants all over Beijing.
Frannie is from Nanjing, Jiangsu, a beautiful city that carries a long history. At ESC, Frannie is in charge of office management and logistics. Before she joined ESC, Frannie worked in senior-level management training, managing a firm’s support department. Frannie graduated from Nanjing University of Finance and Economics with a major in finance. In her free time she also volunteers in life coaching activities and seminars to help others improve their attitude and state of mind.