MEET OUR TEAM
Justin Grosslight – Founder and Director
- AM History of Science, Harvard University
- BS Mathematics, Stanford University
- BA History, Stanford University
Justin Grosslight believes that incisive mentorship is an ideal way to help students prepare for their studies. Through a semi-holistic approach involving dialogue with students and parents, he aims to help students grow their interests, improve their college entrance exam scores, and fashion their essays in ways that can attract college admissions officers. He also relishes teaching mathematics and dedicates a fair amount of time to quantitative pedagogy.
Justin has over a decade of experience in training students for their SAT, ACT, SSAT, GMAT, GRE, AP Calculus, and IB mathematics, exams. Several of his students have received near perfect or perfect scores on portions of their standardized tests. Students he has advised as a college counselor have received admissions to prestigious universities such as Stanford, Vanderbilt, Emory, NYU, UCLA, Duke University, The University of Virginia, UC Davis, The University of Michigan, Boston College, Tufts University, and Case Western University. Of course, Justin is candid about expectations and outcomes from the outset with clients.
Prior to founding JJMG Enterprises, Justin served as Director and Partner for i-IVY and Manda Education. He has also has assisted numerous Vietnamese and American-based education consultancies and worked independently. While pursuing graduate study in history of science at Harvard, he won a Derek Bok Award for Teaching Excellence. Justin also holds undergraduate degrees from Stanford in mathematics and history. He has appeared in the Vietnamese press (Tuổi Trẻ) twice to discuss American education.
Finally, Justin has is a prolific author. He has published academic articles in history of science and mathematics as well as numerous book reviews in history, sociology, history of science, international politics, nonfiction literature, and education. Moreover, he has authored several pedagogical books, all of which are sold on Amazon and some by Nha Sach Phu Nu in Vietnam.
Sonya Petkova – Director and Partner
- M.Phil Comparative Literature, Columbia University
- MA Comparative Literature, Columbia University
- BA English, Stanford University
Having mastered the art of literary analysis and verbal test prep, Sonya has developed a winning methodology to help students increase their verbal scores. Working with Educational Masters, a Russian education company based in Miami, Florida, and then independently, Sonya consistently has students score in the top percentiles on the SAT and TOEFL exams. She also is in the process of translating these skills into online courses to allow greater numbers of individuals and those in more remote areas to benefit from her wisdom. Alongside student training, Sonya has successfully coached professional academic writers to clarify their research writing as well.
In terms of college counseling, Sonya pays special attention to the psychological aspects of the application process. It is no secret that students – especially in the year leading to college applications – are excessively busy and exposed to pressures to succeed. As a consultant, Sonya excels at helping students manage their anxiety while guiding them through the intricate admissions process.
Originally from Bulgaria, Sonya herself has experienced the dream of applying to elite American schools and gaining acceptance to them. She holds undergraduate degrees from Stanford University in English and Political Science, and graduate degrees from Columbia in Comparative Literature. Sonya’s students have been successfully admitted into top US and UK universities such as Cornell, University Columbia University, University of Pennsylvania, Brown, Duke, NYU, UCLA, UC Berkeley, Georgia Tech, Cambridge University, University of Michigan, USC, Boston University, UC San Diego, and Amherst.
Alex Zegarelli – Director and Partner
- BA History, Juniata College
Alex hails from the eastern shores of Boston Massachusetts and received his Bachelors of Arts at Juniata College situated in the mountains of Pennsylvania. In college he studied rigorous scientific subjects such as biology, chemistry, and physics alongside historical inquiry. Though initially set on attending medical school, Alex realized that he wanted to explore a different path in life. As a personal decision, he finished his historical studies with Juniata College and moved to South East Asia to pursue work as an educator for students studying science and English.
After spending time as a teacher in Myanmar and Thailand, Alex realized that Vietnam has the most nurturing environment for him to grow as an educator. Alex has had the pleasure of living in both Ho Chi Minh City and the Mekong Delta teaching English and math to a wide range of students of varying age and abilities since arriving in Vietnam two years ago.
Alex loves to challenge his students and sometimes leaves them with more questions than answers. However, he is always willing to find the time necessary to ensure that they understand important concepts. He aims to provide a solid foundation for his students to reach a level of self-mastery in their pursuits so that they can positively sculpt their future.
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