About Nicholson Tutoring

SARA NICHOLSON, Phd

Owner and TUTOR

A life-long advocate for learning, Sara has been teaching for most of her adult life.

After completing her PhD in Musicology, Sara Nicholson taught first at Towson University in Maryland and then at University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.  She stepped out of her academic career to raise her two children and began teaching and tutoring with a national test prep company.  After over a decade of consistently high student evaluations and student score improvements, Sara left the company in 2015 and currently tutors privately for the ACT, the SAT, the ISEE/SSAT, and various AP tests.  

She works with high-, medium-, and low-scoring students whose goals can range from getting a perfect test score to getting a more competitive score on a single test section.  Sara helps families think through which test (ACT/SAT) is the best fit for the student, different prep options, and how best to utilize the student’s study time. 

Additionally, Sara consults with schools and other organizations to create and implement test prep seminars and other programs.  

When she is not working with students or spending time with her family, Sara enjoys racing Ironman distance triathlons and even manages to exercise the right half of her brain by occasionally playing music and writing about playing music.

Sean Hernandez Adkins, PhD

Tutor

As a first-generation college student, Sean knows first-hand the barriers to acceptance into and success in college. Since undergrad, he has worked in and around education for 20 years, including 8 years with The Princeton Review. He then attended graduate school to earn a Master’s in literacy education at Michigan State, followed by a PhD in Education focusing on Cultural Studies from UNC Chapel Hill. Sean has published several scholarly articles on teacher education and curriculum studies. He has also taught many courses at UNC (including social justice education and thriving at college); Sean also worked at the UNC Learning Center as an academic coach.

As a tutor, Sean loves to get to know his students in order to better personalize their learning experience. He excels with students who feel like they are “bad test takers” and/or “not a math person.” With knowledge of the tests, use of strategies, and guided practice, those felt obstacles are replaced with confidence.

When he was still cool, Sean was in a rock band and played many sports. These days, he likes cooking and playing with his elementary-aged kiddo.