Your School Concierge™ Team
Brad Hoffman and Faya Hoffman — a husband-and-wife team and both Board Certified Educational Planners (Educational Consultants) and Learning Specialists — are your School Concierge team. Together, they work in direct partnership with families in New York City and beyond to strategically and skillfully facilitate all school matters, PreK-12 through college, including but not limited to:
Their relationships with schools, colleagues, and professional partners spans the NYC metro area and well beyond nationally and internationally, including the UK and Switzerland.
As master teachers, educational consultants, and successful college counselors, they are uniquely triple designated for mainstream, specialized, and therapeutic school planning, including both day schools and boarding schools. This exceptional range of expertise makes them unusual and compelling partners; their wide-ranging experiences inform their balanced perspective and enhance their creativity as they pathway with families and students of all ages. They know the journey starts from the very beginning at preschool and kindergarten entry points, and it’s both a pleasure and an honor to loop with students and families year over year; but it’s never too far along in the schooling journey to connect with them. Educational consulting and school planning spans the entire calendar year.
From white glove service to ad hoc support, all consultation with Brad and Faya is managed on an hourly basis to maximize flexibility and to put each family in control of their effort scope. Whether you live in NYC already, you’re relocating to NYC, you’re leaving NYC for another destination, or your student is ready to explore independent schools, boarding schools, or colleges in the US, the UK, Europe or beyond, Brad and Faya can help — they are your School Concierge Team!
Educational Consulting Engagements
Educational consulting efforts come in all shapes and sizes, thus our hourly consulting model as School Concierges has been preferred by our families for the past 17 years in order to facilitate maximum flexibility. Consulting needs could range from a single meeting to several meetings over a period of time to a bigger, more complex planning effort. Private tutoring or academic coaching services at home or remotely are often a part of this planning. Common engagements with our clients include but are not limited to:
- Managing a school transition and related application process, PreK-12
- Managing a college application process, grades 7-12
- Supporting course selection and navigating related school discussions
- Preparing for and/or responding to parent-teacher conferences throughout the school year
- Initiating or escalating requests with classroom teachers or school administration
- Discussing educational trends, approaches, research, curricula, or programs
- Demystifying “park bench chatter” related to schools and educational topics
- Conducting classroom observations to inform planning at school and/or at home
- Advocating for specialized instruction within public and private school settings
- Managing accommodations and/or related appeal processes
- Facilitating IEP and 504 processes as well as tuition reimbursement cases
- Reviewing, discussing, and interpreting school documentation — including report cards and neuropsychological evaluations — to create an action plan at school and/or at home
- Benchmarking reading levels, spelling levels (stages), and writing needs
- Benchmarking math performance across all domains
- Developing, implementing, and/or managing targeted plans for remediation, acceleration, maintenance tutoring, executive function coaching, and test preparation
- Crisis management, including student disciplinary action, mental health challenges, and counseling out matters
- Parent and/or caregiver coaching regarding in-home strategies or enhanced systems to support their learner(s)
In his book, The Answer To How Is Yes, Peter Block discusses four archetypal images involved in getting each of us to act on what matters. These four archetypes are:
- The Engineer
- The Economist
- The Artist
- The Architect.
Block explains that “each represents a strategic stance, a way of thinking, and a way of acting that brings a set of beliefs into the world.” The challenge lies in integrating their qualities, and that’s exactly what we aim to do in our work with families.
Where the engineer and the economist are allies according to Peter Block, and the artist serves as ballast for them, the architect “integrates both worlds” and aims to bring the engineer and the artist together. In our work as Educational Planners and School Concierges, we’re inspired by all four archetypes and, like the architect, aim to bring the various perspectives of all stakeholders into practical, cohesive action. Key stakeholders always include each student and the family members who are involved. Additionally, we often collaborate with classroom teachers and learning specialists, school administration, and other professionals who may be involved.
Admissions Consulting (PreK-12) and School Planning:
- Admissions Consulting and School Planning with Brad and Faya
- Educational Planning With A Multidisciplinary Team
- Test Optional: What Does It Mean In 2026?
- What Can We Learn From The Fall Admissions Season?
- Progressive Education: Developing a Better Understanding
- Counseled Out From Private Schools
- Managing The Awkward Preschool Year
- Why Consider Boarding Schools?
- Boarding School: Fostering Independence
- Report Card Comments and Conferences: What do Parents Want to Know?
College Counseling:
- When To Begin College Planning Efforts (timeline overview, grades 7-12)
- What is a holistic review for college applications?
- Navigating Test-Optional Policies
- High School Seniors and the College Application Season
- An Overview of the College Application Process
- Setting Yourself Apart: Common Application and College Essay Writing
- Start Your College Essays Early
- Building A Strong College Application
- The Importance of Pre-College Summer Programs
- Considering Transferring Colleges: When Is It The Right Decision?
- Considering Transferring Colleges For Academic Reasons
Tutoring and Executive Function Coaching:
- Understanding The Value Of Tutoring With My Learning Springboard
- A Different Tutoring Experience With My Learning Springboard
- A Master Teacher Can Really Make A Difference
- Tutoring As A Springboard To Achievement
- Short-Term Tutoring and Targeted Skill Building
- Improving Executive Function Skills
- Enhancing Metacognition and Executive Functions
Test Preparation:
- ISEE Test Preparation: Why And For How Long?
- The Best Approach to ISEE and SSAT Preparation
- Auditing Academic Skills: Leveraging the ISEE and SSAT
- SSAT and ISEE Test Preparation: Why And For How Long?
- Using ISEE and SSAT Preparation To Bolster Middle And High School Readiness
- ACT Overview
- Comparing the dSAT and ACT
- Why Should I Opt-In To The ACT Writing Section
Scheduling A Planning Meeting
Whatever your educational consulting need or wonder may be, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We always have the option of scheduling a brief, complimentary call to discuss your needs and our services at a higher level.
Often a more substantive, initial school planning meeting is the best way to get started. These meetings can be 30, 45, or 60 minutes by Zoom, by phone, or in person per a family’s preference. A single planning meeting allows us to talk more substantively about your family’s specific needs, priorities, and goals so that we can determine possible next steps.
We’re committed to creating a meaningful experience for each family, and we’d love to hear from you regarding your school planning needs. Please reach out so that we can schedule a meeting in June with an eye toward maximizing the summer season or getting ahead of the school year to come!
Warm regards,
Brad Hoffman and Faya Hoffman
Co-Founders and School Concierges, My Learning Springboard