Ready to learn the history, philosophy, and practice of an experienced professional in the test prep industry? MEET OUR GUEST Meet Maria Harmon. With an MIT degree and love of all things STEM, Maria knows the value of curiosity and its power inside and outside the classroom. She attended a vocational high school, studying under electricians for 4 years. Her Environmental Engineering degree led her to visit farmers in India, get dirty with waste-pickers in Nicaragua, and chase volcanic smog around Hawai’i. Yet every experience has built her passion for unlocking student potential. Since 2011, she has continually tutored, first for work-study, then the Americorps program City Year, then as a full-time career. Maria has a passion for unlocking potential not only in grades and conceptual understanding, but also in self-esteem and the joy of learning. She loves to help students combine vulnerability and effort to invigorate their academic lives as well as their emotional, social, and/or faith lives.  In any given tutoring session, you may find Maria: – becoming overly enthusiastic about percents and fractions, – convincing skeptics that tests are fun, or – sharing openly about life lessons she wished had been taught in school. Fun Facts: Maria is a jack of all trades. She is quite handy around the house, makes chocolate board games, and loves singing a cappella. She is very involved in her church, especially helping to run a homeless and refugee resettlement ministry. Find Maria at mariaftw@alum.mit.edu. PLAYLIST Listen to all of our profiles of outstanding test prep teachers, tutors, and innovators on our Test Prep Profile playlist. ABOUT THIS PODCAST Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page. ABOUT YOUR HOSTS Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros. If you’re interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, feel free to get in touch through our contact page.