Amy Pyfrom brings more than thirty years of experience as a special educator in a public school setting, teaching and nurturing the literacy skills of students of all ages and grade levels through high-quality reading instruction. Amy works directly with students to provide highly individualized, structured literacy instruction tailored to each student’s unique learning needs. […]
Tutoring & Instruction Team
Rachel Branch, B.Ed, A/OGA
Rachel brings 16 years of dedicated experience in public education to her work at The Stern Center. A 2007 graduate of Saint Michael’s College, Rachel has spent the majority of her career focused on ELA and structured literacy. Her background includes 11 years as a classroom teacher and five years as a Literacy Coach and […]
Gina Kells, M.Ed.
Gina has been in the field of education for the past 30 years in a variety of positions- from supervising college students and college bound students, to teaching preschool and kindergarten students. She has worked as a college instructor, a classroom teacher, a preschool teacher, and a reading specialist. She truly enjoys teaching people of […]
Amelia Duffy
Amelia graduated from Plymouth State University in 1997 with a Bachelor of Science in Literature and minor in History. She obtained her 7-12 English license in 2004 through Peer Review with the State of Vermont. She has worked in many educational roles throughout her career that include Behavior Interventionist, Mainstream Instructional Assistant, English teacher, Literacy […]
Lindsey Neves Baillargeron, M.Ed.
Lindsey is a Massachusetts-certified reading specialist and English teacher with 17 years of experience. She has taught English language arts in public and private schools, including programs for students with language-based learning differences. She also has experience teaching reading and writing to international students online. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English and Secondary Education […]
Shelly Burgess Nicotra, MA, FIT/OGA
Shelly Burgess Nicotra earned a dual B.A. from Vanderbilt University and an M.A. from Syracuse University. She taught Art History for several years at the Syracuse University in Florence, Italy program before embarking on a career in marketing and television production in New York City. She served as the Executive Producer of the Emmy-award winning Lidia’s […]


