Every Student Has a
Story Worth Telling
Let's discover it, develop it, and make it count. From the first spark of curiosity to college applications and finding the right school, we help families make educational decisions with purpose and confidence.
UNDERSTAND THE STUDENT
DISCOVER THE POSSIBILITIES
MOVE FORWARD WITH POSSIBILITIES
THE RIGHT GUIDANCE,
AT THE RIGHT TIME
Big decisions. A more personal approach.
From discovering an interest to choosing a school, your family deserves guidance that begins with who your student is.
StoryBuilders Lab™
A compelling application begins with a story worth telling. In five live Zoom workshops, students and parents turn curiosity into meaningful experiences and a personalized 12-Month StoryBuilder Roadmap™—building the foundation for future college essays and applications.
Application Fast Track™
Bring your student’s story to the Common App. This five-week, live Zoom bootcamp helps students shape meaningful experiences into a compelling personal statement, thoughtful supplemental essays, and an activities section that communicates contribution and impact—in their own voice.
School Choice & Placement
Explore independent day and boarding schools with someone who understands school communities. Find an environment where your child can feel understood, supported, and challenged.
Comprehensive Application Plan
Individual guidance from early exploration through application season. Connect academics, interests, and experiences, then weave those threads into a cohesive college application that communicates your student’s strengths, growth, and potential.
Therapeutic School Placement
Compassionate, individualized guidance to help families find the right therapeutic boarding school, residential treatment program, or specialized educational setting. From exploring options to placement and ongoing support, we help your loved one find a safe, nurturing environment where healing, growth, and lasting progress are possible.
Educational Expert Witness
Independent, objective educational evaluations for divorce and custody proceedings. We work with family law attorneys to assess and compare school placement options, providing expert analysis, written reports, and courtroom testimony. Our goal is to bring clarity to complex educational decisions while keeping the child's individual needs and best interests at the center of every recommendation.
Meet Barbara Leventhal
Experienced educator.
Creative thinker.
In your corner.
Every parent sees something special in their child. Barbara helps bring those qualities into focus—and turn them into possibilities.
With decades of experience in independent school leadership, admissions, and educational consulting, she brings both a school leader’s understanding of fit and a storyteller’s eye for what makes each student distinctive.
MORE THAN AN APPLICATION CHECKLIST
First, we get to know
the person behind the grades.
01 / Discover
What lights them up?
We explore interests, strengths, learning needs, and aspirations. The starting point is always the individual.
02 / Develop
Give curiosity a direction.
Connect interests to purposeful opportunities, thoughtful choices, and experiences your student can build on.
03 / Tell the story
Bring the story to the application.
Help students express what gives them purpose, how their experiences have shaped them, and what they will contribute to a college community—through essays and application responses in their own voice.
FROM LIVED EXPERIENCE TO COLLEGE APPLICATION
Their story. Their purpose.
Their dream college.
A love of music. A question that leads to research. A desire to help someone else. These experiences become powerful material when students can explain what motivated them, what they contributed, and how they changed.
Meaningful experiences give students a sense of purpose. As they explore, take initiative, and contribute, they discover what matters to them—and what they have to offer others.
Barbara helps students connect those experiences and express their purpose through a compelling personal statement, thoughtful supplemental essays, and an activities section with depth. Together, these pieces help an admission officer answer two essential questions: Who is this applicant, and what will they bring to our college?
That connection is at the heart of our college admission guidance: helping your student build a distinctive, compelling application that shows their dream colleges why they belong—and what they are ready to contribute.
The story starts now. Their dream college is the goal.
My student is in eighth, ninth, or tenth grade. Is it too early?
Not at all. StoryBuilders Lab is a five-week, live Zoom group workshop, with 75-minute sessions for students and parents together. Families explore interests, develop initiative, and build depth over time. Each student attends all five sessions with at least one parent; parents may take turns attending from week to week.
What's the difference between Fast Track and comprehensive advising?
Application Fast Track is a five-week live Zoom bootcamp for students applying through the Common App. The $20,000 Comprehensive Application Plan is a one-on-one boutique service with broader, individualized guidance on strategy, academics, activities, college selection, and applications.
Do you help with schools other than colleges?
Yes. We advise families exploring local independent schools, boarding schools, and specialized therapeutic school placement.
Can attorneys inquire about expert witness services?
Yes. Use the consultation form and select Educational Expert Witness to describe the matter briefly. Please avoid sending confidential case documents through the initial inquiry.
Your student's next chapter starts with a conversation.
Tell me about your student, what’s on your mind, and where you could use a little guidance. We’ll find a thoughtful next step together.
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All rights reserved.