Our Team We’ll help you get where you want to go.

Our leaders are admissions experts, thoughtful communicators, and seasoned parents. They’re the guides and professionals you want in your corner.

Lead Consultant
Meet Amy

As the Founder and CEO of Launch IV, Amy provides individualized guidance for college-bound students, helping them present a compelling and well-organized application profile. Her extensive experience collaborating with admissions officers from the Ivy League and other highly selective U.S. universities is an invaluable resource to her clients.

Before founding Launch IV, Amy spent seven years at a global educational consultancy based in New York City, where she advised students around the world and helped them earn admission to top-tier colleges. Earlier in her career, she evaluated more than 10,000 applications and essays as an Associate Director of Admissions at Bucknell University and Binghamton University. Amy’s insights into the college admissions process have been featured in MSN, The Cut, and U.S. News & World Report.

An avid traveler, Amy has visited 50 countries, often presenting to students at international schools about U.S. college admissions. A former Division I student-athlete and a mother of three, she enjoys playing tennis with her teenagers and supporting their curiosity and self-inquiry. Having a daughter who is neurodivergent has shaped Amy’s deep commitment to working with neurodivergent students. She approaches the process with compassion, drawing on the same spirit of self-inquiry and support she encourages in her own children, and believes in helping every student discover and share their authentic story, one that will guide their success in college and beyond.

Head of Client Experience
Meet Clare

Clare orchestrates Launch IV’s daily operations, strategic business growth, and client relationships. With her exceptional communication skills and deep understanding of the independent college counseling industry, she ensures our clients receive unparalleled service, leading to outstanding outcomes.

Bringing a wealth of experience to her role, Clare holds a BSBA from Bucknell University and built a successful career in the J.P. Morgan Private Bank, where she honed her financial management and client-centric service skills. Clare’s leadership extends beyond the corporate world, as she has held multiple board positions for organizations throughout Southern Connecticut.

Clare’s most rewarding achievement has been guiding her three children through the college admissions process. With Amy’s expert counsel, all three were admitted early decision to their top-choice universities.

College Admissions Consultant
Meet Zach

Zach brings six years in highly selective college admissions and another six years in private college counseling to Launch IV. He began his career at the College of the Holy Cross before he returned to his alma mater, Boston College, as a Senior Assistant Director of Admission. Although he switched from higher education to pursue a position at a financial tech company, he added a role as a private college counselor at a top-ranked NYC college consultancy firm specializing in Ivy League admissions (where he met Amy!), advising high school students across all four grades. 

Students have directly benefited from Zach’s counseling, attending Boston College, Colgate, Cornell, Georgetown, Michigan, Northeastern, NYU, Tufts, USC, UCLA, University of Virginia, Washington University in St Louis, Wake Forest and Williams.  

A former editor of his college newspaper, Zach appreciates the essay writing process the most, helping students develop ideas and mold them into a stellar final piece. He also prides himself on demystifying the admissions process, which carries with it transparent and honest conversations with students about why they are interested in a certain school and their chances of admission. He believes that while the college process can be challenging, it doesn’t have to be a stressful one.

In his free time, Zach enjoys hiking, kayaking, and skiing with his partner and friends near his Colorado home. An avid football fan, he cheers on the Packers on fall Sundays. He also hopes to cross a fifth continent off his international travel list soon.

College Admissions Consultant
Meet Julie

With over two decades of experience in college admissions counseling, Julie brings a wealth of knowledge and a global perspective to guiding students through the complex college application process.

Julie holds an MSED in Counseling and Guidance from Bucknell University and a BA in Political Science with a minor in Russian from Union College, NY. Her professional background includes four years as Assistant Director of Admissions at Bucknell University, which provided her with invaluable insights into the university admissions process. At Bucknell, Julie worked with Amy and collaborated as an international admissions recruiting team member. She then joined the foreign service and traveled the world representing U.S. interests abroad while also continuing to work as an independent college counselor for several well-respected consulting companies.

Julie brings extensive knowledge, having reviewed thousands of college applications, interviewed prospective students, and made admissions decisions, making her exceptionally qualified to navigate today’s complex admissions landscape. She has visited hundreds of college campuses, giving her a deep understanding of what colleges look for in applicants, and she uses this insight to help students find their best-fit schools. Julie has guided students from 9th-12th grade through the admissions process, offered SAT test-taking strategies, and presented on panels to parents and students about gaining acceptance to U.S. universities. Julie emphasizes an organized and methodical approach to the college admissions process. She has recently worked with students accepted to Boston College, Brown, Bucknell, Carnegie Mellon, Duke, Macalester, Michigan, MIT, Stanford, Tufts, University of Florida, University of Virginia and Wesleyan.

Julie also has considerable experience supporting student-athletes across various college sports programs, including Division I and Division III. She nurtures relationships with admissions personnel and coaches and provides valuable guidance to aspiring collegiate athletes.

Julie is an avid downhill skier and spent 17 years as a Foreign Service Officer living in Europe and the Middle East. As a parent, Julie navigated the admissions process with her own two children. She has a daughter who is currently at Bucknell University and a son who recently graduated from Duke University.

College Admissions Consultant
Meet Jenny

Jenny has spent her career helping students discover their voice and navigate the college admissions process with confidence. After earning her bachelor’s degree from Washington University in St. Louis and a J.D. from New York Law School, she began her career as an attorney before finding her true calling in education. She spent eight years on the WashU admissions team, rising to Associate Director of Undergraduate Admissions, before moving to the other side of the desk. Prior to joining Launch IV, Jenny counseled students at an independent high school and later at a premier global college consultancy.

Jenny has guided students to success at selective institutions including Columbia, Duke, Vanderbilt, Michigan, Notre Dame, UC Berkeley, UCLA, UVA, and WashU. What matters most to her, however, isn’t the name of the school—it’s getting to know each student as a whole person, helping them develop their narrative, and tell their story authentically. A recognized thought leader in the industry, her expertise has been featured in U.S. News & World Report and Town & Country.

Based in Colorado, Jenny enjoys exploring the mountains with her husband and two children, gardening, trying new recipes from her harvest, traveling, and winding down with a good book or true-crime documentary.

Educational Advisor and Transfer Admissions Specialist
Meet Jessica

Jessica specializes in adaptive coaching and college counseling, guiding students through their academic journeys and future planning. She helps individuals develop crucial skills such as goal setting, self-advocacy, problem-solving, and stress management and provides support throughout the college admissions process.

With over 25 years of leadership experience at a prestigious independent school, Jessica has held diverse roles including teacher, admissions committee member, Dean of Students, and AP Reader. She has also written hundreds of teacher recommendations for college and provided feedback on thousands of academic essays. Her commitment to ongoing learning is evident in her numerous qualifications, including certificates in Restorative Practices from IIRP, Universal Design for Learning from Harvard University, and Core Concepts for Educational Consultants from NACAC. Jessica also stays current with educational trends through courses like Yale University’s Science of Well-Being for Teens and Enneagram training to better understand today’s youth.

Jessica gets the most enjoyment out of her two sons, her daughter, and two dogs. In her leisure time, she enjoys playing paddle tennis, traveling to visit friends, and tending to her ever-expanding garden. As a parent, she’s recently gone through the college admissions process and is a proud mom of a Michigan Wolverine.

Student Reviews

After our daughter got deferred from her dream school, The University of Virginia, our initial consultant advised us to explore alternative options, claiming there was little we could do. Turning to Amy for a second opinion, she promptly devised a strategy for her to pursue. We fully attribute our daughter’s removal from the waitlist and eventual admission to UVA, to Amy’s insightful guidance and effective plan of action.”

Liz, Parent of Student at University of Virginia, Class of 2027

The entire application process was exciting, fun, stressful, and challenging. But most of all, it was a time of self-growth, self-reflection, and processing, and you truly helped me achieve that. It’s such a wonderful feeling that we got the result we always wanted, but I think our work together was about more than just that. The point is, I know we would not have gotten that result without the team effort, and I sincerely, have you to thank.

James, Student at Cornell University, Class of 2029

We cannot thank you enough for your partnership in navigating such a stressful and statistically daunting process. Your insights, strategic thinking and sincere care for Grace made an enormous difference in our collective experience and in Grace’s outcome.

Jen, Parent of Student at Duke University, incoming class of 2029

I wanted Amy to be one of the first people to know that I was accepted to Notre Dame, because honestly I couldn’t have done it without her. My family and I are so thankful for her constant drive helping me get to where I am today.”

Ann, University of Notre Dame, Class of 2026

Our son had traditional college counseling at his boarding school, beginning his sophomore year. His senior year, the counselor suddenly resigned. With a stretch goal for his preferred school, we felt he needed more personal guidance, so we turned to Amy at Launch IV. She quickly earned his trust by listening and understanding his goals and aspirations for college. She learned about his personal interests, and thoroughly evaluated his high school CV. She guided him through a discussion of the reality of applying to highly competitive schools, and helped him create a new list of schools that would challenge him, and fit his criteria for studying finance. Her most influential role was helping him create a personal narrative, and assisting him with the application process in a way that allowed his personality to shine through. He was ecstatic when he received his early acceptance and proudly shared his application and essays with his younger sister. He offered her advice and guidance about what she should be doing now to prepare to work with Amy on her future applications. We are very grateful to Amy for providing the personal touch and guidance that was instrumental to our son’s success!

Beth, Parent of Student at Wake Forest University, class of 2028

We can’t say enough about Launch IV. Amy’s expertise and guidance during a stressful period were truly invaluable. My son was feeling overwhelmed by the whole college admissions process, not to mention completely stuck on his personal statement and Amy turned things around starting with their very first meeting. My son actually enjoyed their sessions and Amy really took the time to understand who he was as a student, an athlete and an individual. He ended up with essays and an application that were authentic, distinctive and really stood out. He was accepted ED to his first-choice school and we are forever grateful to Launch IV for helping him achieve his goals.

Kelly, Parent of Student at University of Virginia, Class of 2028
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