PrepNow Tutor - Jai T.

Jai's Bio

An environmental scientist with a passion for teaching and mentoring, Jai is in their element when wearing waders and investigating the nearest body of water. That passion was fostered as Jai earned a BS and a PhD in environmental science from Ohio State University. Jai’s teaching acumen was also fostered there, as they worked the entire tenure of their PhD program mentoring undergraduate students in advanced biology and chemistry labs. They performed so well in that role that they became the mentorship program Coordinator, actively recruiting undergraduate and graduate students to participate in the program. Somehow, they also found time to become a Big Brother/Big Sister mentor (still engaged in that role), and they worked for years as a graduate teaching assistant and instructor of record in the sciences.
After graduating from college, Jai has worked as a technical writer, developing educational materials and labs encompassing a wide range of subject matter, including neurophysiology, computer science, and sustainability. Also, they have also recently become involved with Letters to a Pre-scientist, an organization for which established STEM practitioners encourage careers in and demystify STEM fields. They also have copious experience in SAT and ACT test prep tutoring.
Jai’s tutoring style is based on empathy and personalization: they find that engaging students is easiest when the students feel seen. Jai says, “I love connecting with students to find ways to engage them with content in a way that is relevant, impactful, and exciting to them.” Toward this end, Jai encourages students to bring the full range of their identities into the classroom, creating a safe, inclusive learning environment. “I do this by understanding student motivations, their context, and their drive in and out of the classroom,” Jai says. This allows Jai to “relate to students on a multitude of levels” and to effectively relay content to students.
In high school and college, Jai participated in swimming and rowing. They also love backpacking, traveling, hiking, and doing anything near water and anything outdoors. Finally, Jai can often be found reading popular science and science fiction books, painting watercolors, or hanging out with their dog, Minnow.