College Counselors and Professionals
Explo has assembled an impressive team of experts to oversee our college preparatory offerings. Through optional courses and seminars, these experts advise and guide our students in various aspects of the college search and application processes.
Through courses on the college search and essay writing, as well as weekly seminars and one-on-one counseling, these seasoned professionals help to make a daunting process more accessible, more manageable... and even more fun.
Committee Members
Sarah Hoffman
Sarah Hoffman is a highly experienced college advisor. Previously an assistant director of admission at Smith College and a college counselor at Northfield Mount Hermon School, Sarah is now a college advisor at Newton North High School. Sarah has a Master’s Degree from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education. In addition to individual counseling, during the summer, she teaches the Explo at Yale College Search Concentration.
Dr. Sarah Myers McGinty
Sarah Myers McGinty is the founder of McGinty Consulting Group. She is an acknowledged expert in the writing of application essays and has appeared multiple times in the Wall Street Journal, U. S. News and World Report, the Chronicle of Higher Education, and on NPR. She began her career in secondary teaching and then served as associate director of admission at Sarah Lawrence College, in Bronxville, NY.
She taught in the Graduate School of Education at Harvard University from 1993 to 2005 and also taught expository writing to undergraduates during her time there. Sarah’s books include Writing Your College Application Essay, 50 College Admission Directors Speak to Parents, and The College Application Essay. She received the National Association of College Admission Counseling Writer’s Award for research on the essay process of students in urban high schools. Many schools and institutions — including Duke University and Fidelty Investment Management — have invited her to facilitate workshops and training. Her educational consulting practice is based in Boston.
Logan Powell
Logan Powell is Director of Undergraduate Admission at Princeton University. Prior to his post at Princeton, he served as Senior Associate Dean of Admission at Bowdoin College and spent five years as a member of the Harvard University admission staff. Powell is a graduate of Bowdoin College and earned his M.Ed. at the Graduate School of Education at Harvard University.
Dr. Carlene Riccelli
Carlene Riccelli is an independent educational consultant known for her expertise in college counseling and teaching. She has designed and run numerous workshops on all aspects of the college search process. As Assistant Dean of Students at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Carlene was responsible for undergraduate advising, counseling, academic support, and referral services. At the same time, she was the Director of Greek Affairs.
Particularly active around college access issues, Carlene was part of the College Access Collaborative research team investigating college access under the auspices of Harvard University/The Kennedy School of Government. Since 2006, Carlene has been a consultant to the College Board, the organization that sponsors the SAT and Advanced Placement programs. For many years she was a college counselor and director of guidance at schools in Massachusetts. Her numerous honors include The Phebe and Zephaniah Swift Moore Award for Extraordinary Teaching at the Secondary Level, awarded by Amherst College, and The College Board New England Regional Assembly Leadership Award.
National Association for College Admission Counseling
Explo is a proud member of the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC). Founded in 1937, the NACAC is a worldwide organization of more than 11,000 counseling professionals dedicated to serving students as they make choices about pursuing postsecondary education. NACAC is committed to helping students realize their full educational potential, while promoting high professional standards that foster ethical and social responsibility.
