I’m thrilled to introduce you to Christine Sharma, founder of Firefly Educational Consulting. I met Christine at an event recently and as soon as I heard about her business, I asked her to do a Q&A interview with Beyond The Brochure–Christina
1. Does Firefly Educational Consulting specialize in a specific geographic area?
As a Kindergarten teacher, I get to work with our littlest learners inside the classroom, and as an Educational Consultant, I get to connect families from Camarillo to Calabasas with the “just right” educational resources, schools, and support specialists in our corner of the world.
2. Do you work with all students of all grade levels?
I am honored to support Firefly Families and their school age children from Preschool – 8th Grade.
3. How does your professional experience help you assist families who want to find a great private school?
As an educator, with experience teaching in both private and public schools, I know that our families have many choices when it comes to educating their children. With deep roots in education and in our community, I am able to offer families a supportive and personalized school search experience.
4. What do you think is the biggest challenge facing families who want to apply to top private schools in LA/Ventura County?
The private school search experience can feel quite different here than it does a bit further south. We have fewer private independent schools than in the heart of Los Angeles, making the application process less familiar for many of our families, while simultaneously creating competition for limited spots into our top private schools, both private independent and parochial.
5. Can you tell us a bit about your approach to working with families?
Relationships are the heart and soul of Firefly, and I have loved being able to build relationships with families as well as the stand-out schools and specialists who serve children in our community.
6. How are your fees/services structured?
I like to meet with prospective parents for a short complimentary consultation, after which my hourly fee is $130. I am also happy to offer a Preschool Placement Package, for families of our smallest students who would like comprehensive support during their school search.