Meet Our College Planning Experts

Ann Brookes is an LL.M. tax attorney who addresses IRS tax matters for families and small businesses across the country and overseas, untangling sticky audits and providing advice to help avoid them. She makes regular appearances on the Lee Elci Radio Show and other media outlets offering facts, figures, and commentary on tax and related policy issues. Learn more at www.TaxAttorneyAtLaw.com.

For more than 25 years, Becky Claster has been working with college-bound students as a teacher, tutor, advisor, and mentor. She is the founder of Claster Educational Services and currently is the college counselor at Blyth-Templeton Academy in Washington, D.C. Claster loves helping high school students find colleges that are a great fit and preparing them for a successful application process. Previously, she worked in the U.S. House of Representatives and at AmeriCorps, and is deeply committed to service and volunteering. She holds a master's degree in secondary education and a certificate in college counseling.

Mary Gamache is the college counselor at Randolph-Macon Academy (R-MA), a co-ed boarding and day school in Front Royal, Virginia, that provides college-prep education and leadership training through Air Force Junior ROTC. She is a retired U.S. Air Force chief master sergeant with years of teaching and career guidance while on active duty. After her retirement, Gamache taught Air Force Junior ROTC for two years, then became the college counselor at R-MA in 2010. Since that time, she has visited more than 150 colleges, developed numerous resources for her students, and created a college-planning process that begins in the eighth grade. Gamache's college counseling efforts with more than 500 students over the last decade have resulted in graduating classes that average a 100% acceptance rate, a 96% matriculation rate, and an average of $6 million in merit scholarships each year. She holds an MS from National University and a BS from Bluefield College.

Jeff Gant is the director of undergraduate admissions at Montclair State University in Montclair, New Jersey. He has worked in higher education for 12 years in the areas of academic advising, marketing, enrollment management, and admissions counseling. In his capacity as director, Gant oversees all new undergraduate recruitment for New Jersey's second-largest university. He is also a proud two-time graduate of Montclair State, having earned his BA in French translation and an MA in French studies from the university.

Mai Jumamil currently lives in San Diego, California. She spent her undergraduate years at the University of California, Los Angeles, and the University of California, Riverside, where she earned her bachelor's degree in economics with a concentration in management information systems and coding. In her six years at Kaplan Test Prep, Jumamil has worked passionately to support students in various roles as a campus brand ambassador, SAT/ACT/PSAT/GRE teacher, enrollment counselor, business developer, and now, the director of college prep programs.

Jill Rayner is the director of financial and veteran aid at the University of North Georgia. She has been in the financial aid profession for over 25 years. Rayner started in financial aid as a federal work-study student and has worked in every type of school: private, prosperity, technical, and public. She is a first generation Pell grant student who loves helping all students go to school with as little loan debt as possible.

Virginia Ruehrwein holds a BA from Providence College and an Ed.M. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She began her lifelong career in education as a teacher and was a high school guidance counselor when she found her true calling to specialize in college admissions. Ruehrwein was a director of college preparation for GEAR UP (Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs) for Boston Public Schools for seven years. Upon moving to San Diego, she started her consulting practice, focusing on college admissions and standardized test preparation. You can learn more at https://www.totalstudentsupport.com.