Our Tutors
Intelligentsia tutors share some similarities: they went to great colleges, many have a Master’s or Doctorate Degree (or several) from top universities, and all have a minimum of five years teaching or tutoring experience.
But our tutors share a trait more important than credentials. They share the gift to communicate, inspire and mentor their students. They don’t simply know their subjects; they know their students, and how to tailor their teaching to each individual mind.
Leeza Pesok
Leeza is studying Neuroscience & Behavior and Education on the Pre-Medical track at Barnard College of Columbia University. With over four years of experience tutoring students in both public and private school settings, as well as time spent as a substitute teacher, Leeza brings a thoughtful and adaptable approach to learning. She specializes in math and science—covering Algebra, Geometry, Pre-Calculus, Biology, Chemistry, and Physics—but is also skilled in supporting a broad range of academic subjects. Leeza has experience working with students with learning differences and provides empathetic, individualized support to help each student thrive. Outside of lectures and her work at Intelligentsia, you can find Leeza performing improv comedy in the city or researching the motor neurons of fruit fly larvae!
Selena Martinez
Selena holds a BA in English from Dartmouth College and a Masters in English Literature with distinction from the University of St Andrews. A native New Yorker, she began her tutoring career in high school, leading an essay-writing workshop for her peers at the Beacon School and assisting in AP Biology. For the past four years, Selena has worked in both NYC and the U.K. as an in-home and online tutor, joining Intelligentsia in 2023. Working with students of all levels from elementary school to college, she is an expert tutor in both the humanities and the sciences, assisting with everything from ISEE, SHSAT, SAT and ACT prep to the high school curriculum, including Spanish and French. She appreciates working with students who need extra support navigating the pressures of academia. A veteran solo-traveler to over twenty-five countries, Selena strives to make learning an exciting venture and help equip students to take on new challenges.
Kevin graduated from MIT with a dual Bachelor’s degree in mathematics and music in 2021. Since graduation, he’s lived and worked in New York, acting as a programmer and program manager for a top quantitative financial firm and as a freelance jazz composer and arranger. He has a passion for teaching technical subjects and has experience working with students on topics ranging from calculus to AI and programming with Python. In his free time, Kevin loves checking out the music and art the city has to offer and working through puzzles like the Rubik’s Cube.
Lori Palm
Lori completed a BA in French Literature & Film at Columbia University and holds an MFA in Screenwriting from UCLA. A tutor with over twelve years experience, first in Los Angeles and now in New York City, Lori joined Intelligentsia in 2010 as a comprehensive subject tutor specializing in writing, math, and executive function. Although she’s bounced between coasts in adulthood, Lori first moved to New York City at age 17 to train with the Joffrey Ballet.
Hemal Pathak
Hemal holds a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from the University of Pennsylvania, having studied the biophysics of chloride channel activity in acquired temporal lobe epilepsy. He specializes in math and science at all levels and test prep (ACT, SAT, SAT Biology, SAT Chemistry, SAT Physics, SAT Math 2). In addition to tutoring, Hemal has experience teaching at the high school and college levels (teacher at Stuyvesant High School and teaching assistant at the University of Pennsylvania). As a tutor, he has helped students in all levels of math and science classes, as well as for all parts of the ACT and SAT. In addition, Hemal has helped students achieve their highest scores on all math and science AP and SAT subject tests. With students ranging from third graders to college and graduate students and even dolphins (teaching them sign language!), we’ve been lucky to have Hemal on the Intelligentsia team since 2010.
Kyra Kraft
Kyra is a BS Candidate in Computer Science and Product Design at Stanford University. She began tutoring in 2015 and covers all subjects related to math, technology, and design, with a keen interest in curriculum development. While at Stanford, she has co-founded a design education program through which she has developed and taught a course on User Experience & User Interface Design to over 40 Stanford design students. She has also taught technical art classes for six years through KEM Creative Studios, a not-for-profit program she co-founded in 2013 that brings technical art classes to underserved children in Los Angeles. If she’s not teaching or in class herself, you might find Kyra under the sea getting some use out of her open water scuba diving certification.
Christopher Panebianco
Chris is pursuing his Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences at The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai with a focus on Orthopaedic Tissue Engineering, Injectable Biomaterials, and Regenerative Engineering. He holds a B.Eng. in Chemical Engineering from The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art with a Minor in Biomedical Engineering/Tissue Engineering. Chris has been tutoring since 2016 and specializes in science (biology, chemistry, physics), mathematics (algebra, precalculus, calculus, statistics), chemical engineering (thermodynamics, material and energy balances, heat and mass transport, fluid dynamics), and test prep (SAT/ACT/GRE math). Since joining Intelligentsia in 2021, he’s gone toe-to-toe with some of the most demanding curricula in the city and they better watch out—it’s hard to beat this second degree black belt in Kempo (not to mention his blue belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu!).
Giancarlo Enriquez
Giancarlo is studying Mathematics and Electrical Engineering at NYU’s Tandon School of Engineering and brings several years of math tutoring experience to Intelligentsia. He covers Tutoring in a wide array of subjects in mathematics and test preparation including SSAT, SHSAT, ISEE, SAT, ACT, Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, Precalculus, AP Calculus AB/BC, and AP Statistics. If you’re searching for Giancarlo during his downtime, you may want to check the Washington Square Park chess tables, as he is an avid chess player!
Grant Schleifer
Grant holds an MD from Harvard Medical School, along with a BS and MPH from Emory University. He has been tutoring since 2016, specializing in MCAT tutoring and medical school application advising, with a focus on biology, chemistry, and physics. Grant is currently a physician training in physical medicine and rehabilitation at Harvard. His passion for fitness goes deeper than his studies, having completed a whopping 20 marathons in 10 different countries. Talk about a globetrotter!
Colin Ainsworth
Colin graduated from Kenyon College with a Bachelor's degree in English and Religious Studies, and received his MFA in Fiction from Columbia University. Since graduating, he’s written for a variety of online publications and has edited manuscripts for other writers. Colin has been tutoring with Intelligentsia since the fall of 2022. He provides academic support in essay writing across subjects, along with tutoring the Reading and Grammar sections of the SAT. Prior to joining Intelligentsia, Colin worked with Breakthrough Central Texas throughout high school and college. At Breakthrough, he taught and mentored prospective first-generation college students. When he’s not tutoring, you can find Colin on the basketball court— he almost played Division III college basketball, twice!
