The Staff at SoloQuest
Back row: Les Villanyi, Elizabeth Theriot, Deborah Stewart, John Serena,
Front row: Catherine Spaccia, Betul Amjadi, Debbie Cahoon
Deborah Stewart
Deborah Stewart, Director, B.A., University of Michigan, and M. A. Educational Administration, SSU, is a veteran educator with over 45 years of experience. As a teacher and administrator in both private and public secondary schools, Deborah worked with many students who were not excelling in their schools due to either psychological interference or learning skill deficits that affected their learning processes. The schools, despite having dedicated teachers, were unable to really help these students beyond the usual accommodations of granting more time and flexibility for assignments. Deborah was instrumental in starting The Marin School and Tamiscal High School in Marin County before she founded SoloQuest School & Learning Center 21 years ago. All of these schools offer individualized instruction and develop personalized plans for each student. Recently, Deborah and her staff have been trained to work with students in cognitive tutoring sessions, which strengthen necessary learning skills, such as memory, auditory and visual processing , attention and sensory processing integration. In her educational career, Deborah has always emphasized the needs of each individual student as her top priority.
Betul Amjadi
I have a BA in Chemistry from Akdeniz University in Turkey (2000) and teaching credentials in Chemistry and Mathematics. I also have a Master's Degree in Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) USA (2013) and an equivalency from the International Education Research Foundation (IERF) (2008). I have taught math and science in different schools both full and part time. I teach algebra, algebra 2, geometry, business math, and math for young learners. My teaching philosophy is that the teacher's job is not only teaching the curriculum but also being a guide while students learn.
Debbie Cahoon
I have a BA in Biology from San Francisco State University and a single subject teaching credential in Biology as well as Supplemental credentials in Health and Physical Education. I have taught full-time for 20+ years and now tutor and teach Biology, Chemistry and Physics as well as Integrated Science and Environmental Science.
Jana Kania
Jana is a Sonoma native who loves being a part of the
educational community here. A passion for cultures and people led her into the
field of teaching English (ESL) in 2010. Besides teaching, Jana likes to spend
her time traveling, being outdoors, and connecting with her family and friends.
John Serena
John was educated at Carleton College and at the University
of Minnesota, Twin Cities. As a teacher, he strives to foster a curiosity
about the world and a spirit of the adventure of learning. A teacher in
the field of math, John especially loves problem-solving and helping students
explore connections between mathematical concepts and the broader world. In
addition to math, John is well versed other subjects: US and World History,
literature and composition, and Spanish, to name several. When John isn't
working at SoloQuest, he enjoys running, reading, hiking, and sailing in the
San Francisco Bay.
Les Villanyi
Co-Director. BA, MA French, California State University, Los Angeles. I teach and tutor English, algebra, geometry, algebra 2, trigonometry, and pre-calculus, as well as foreign languages and SAT/ACT/GED test preparation. In addition to teaching at the university and high school levels, I have many years of sales training experience which enables me to not only teach the content of a subject but also to teach to the individual student.
707-939-1133
415-927-1449