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

Amy provides individualized support for college-bound students and caters to their educational goals. She directs students in presenting a well-organized application profile. Her experience collaborating with college admissions counselors from the Ivy League and other selective U.S. universities is an invaluable resource to her clients.

While working at a top-ranked NYC college consultancy firm specializing in Ivy League admissions, Amy spent the last seven years successfully advising and placing students into the leading tier of highly selective colleges. Prior to this experience, she evaluated over 10,000 college applications and essays as an Associate Director of Admissions while working at Bucknell University and Binghamton University. Amy’s insight into navigating the college admissions process has been documented in media outlets including MSN, The Cut, and U.S. News & World Report.

An avid traveler, Amy has visited 48 countries. In many of these destinations, she’s presented to students at international schools on topics related to the U.S. college admissions process. A mother of three who was a Division I student athlete, she loves to play tennis with her teenagers and support their spirit of self-inquiry. Having a daughter who is neurodivergent has shaped her passion for consulting neurodivergent students. She approaches the process with compassion and values overseeing students’ stories—from academics to personal triumphs—which impact them no matter where they enroll in college.

Director of Client Relations
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.

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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