Meet our San Jose Tutoring Staff

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Great Teachers Inspire

Our tutors and staff in San Jose - Camden consist of passionate educators who love inspiring children to succeed. Warm, caring and great at relating to kids, our tutors in San Jose know how to engage and motivate each child in a personal way—building confidence and smiles, as well as skills and better scores. We selectively choose tutors who know local curriculum and can link Sylvan lessons to what’s being taught in school. Get to know our tutors and staff in San Jose - Camden!

  • Aisling Gallagher, Center Director

    Aisling Gallagher

    Center Director

    Aisling is the Center Director at Sylvan Camden. Aisling received her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Maynooth University, Ireland. She has worked in various education settings in the United Kingdom and has experience working with children of all ages and special needs. She started her journey at Sylvan as a teacher in Mountain View and San Jose before becoming a Director with Sylvan. Aisling is passionate about education and helping children reach their maximum potential. In her spare time, Aisling loves to travel and explore new countries and cultures.
  • Roger Shore, Executive Director

    Roger Shore

    Executive Director

    Roger is a former classroom teacher with experience in grades K-8. Following his teaching career, Roger received a master's degree in clinical psychology and worked in private practice as a marriage, family and child counselor specializing in families and school related problems. He opened the Cupertino Sylvan Learning Center in 1993, the Center in San Jose in 1994 and the Mt. View Center in 2000.
  • Kristina Apodaca, Tutor

    Kristina Apodaca

    Tutor

    Kristina is a tutor in San Jose, CA, and her favorite tutoring subject is writing. She has taught middle and high school for 15 years, and loves coaching soccer. Kristina has her bachelor's in Family and Consumer Sciences Education and her Master's is in Educational Leadership. When she isn't working with kids, she's spending quality time with her own kids, usually outdoors and likely at the beach.
  • Karyn Cipresso, Tutor

    Karyn Cipresso

    Tutor

    Karyn has been a professional educator since earning her Multiple Subject Teaching Credential from San Jose State University in 2004. She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and her master’s degree from San Jose State University. Her experience teaching a variety of subjects and ages allows her to be quite versatile, but she especially enjoys tutoring reading and writing. Moreover, she believes that one of life’s greatest pleasures is to be captivated by a really wonderful book. Karyn takes a genuine interest in her students and makes the most of opportunities to encourage students to fully develop their academic skills and abilities.  
  • Marina D, Tutor

    Marina D

    Tutor

    Marina is a tutor at Sylvan San Jose. She has special expertise in math and physics tutoring. Marina studied at the University of Moscow. When Marina is not working at Sylvan you’ll find her hiking with her husband or spending time her cat. 
  • Connie Kass, Tutor

    Connie Kass

    Tutor

    Connie has worked as an instructor at Sylvan of San Jose since March 2013. She is a graduate of Calvin College where she obtained her BA in Elementary Education, and Michigan State University where she received her MA in Curriculum and Development. Connie was a classroom teacher at San Jose Christian School for 17 years in grades 2-4, particularly enjoying instruction in early literacy skills, reading, writing, and math. Before that she taught in Michigan, Nigeria, and Wisconsin. Connie has experience tutoring one on one, in small groups with children after school, and teaching her own classes in the last 25 years. In her free time, Connie enjoys reading, movies, theater, and travel.
  • Marlisha Holland, Tutor

    Marlisha Holland

    Tutor

    Marlisha is a tutor at Sylvan of San Jose. She obtained her Bachelor's in Child and Adolescent Development from San Jose State University. She is currently working on a Master's in Secondary Education at Grand Canyon University. Once she completes her student teaching hours, Marlisha will be teaching math at either the middle school or early high school level. Marlisha started teaching preschool in 2015 and moved on in 2017 to teaching at a before and after school program at Bracher Elementary in Santa Clara. In her free time, Marlisha enjoys cooking for family and friends, watching football, especially the Dallas Cowboys, and watching basketball, especially the Los Angeles Lakers