Our Instructors >> James Brock
James Brock
James Brock loves teaching and standardized tests. He got his first teaching experience as a summer camp counselor in the sticky summers of Washington D.C., teaching sports and generally making a fool of himself singing and performing skits (he can neither act nor sing). He picked up his love of standardized tests early, too, thoroughly enjoying each May and especially the SAT. That enjoyment of the SAT and school in general helped him go across the country to Claremont Mckenna College.
While earning a degree in Mathematics, he tutored students aged 15 to 45 in math from pre-Algebra through multi-variable Calculus. He enjoyed the tutoring so much that when he graduated, he convinced an inner-city LA charter school to hire him to teach Algebra 2 and Calculus despite having absolutely no formal education training. While there, he tried to impart his love of math and standardized tests to students who generally hated them both. They mostly rolled their eyes, but some of them came around to admit it was actually kind of fun.
After three years of teaching, James moved 2/3 of the way back home with his wife and children, landing in St. Louis, MO to purse a Master of Divinity degree. While studying the intricacies of Greek and Hebrew (remarkably helpful for Sentence Correction), he continued tutoring math and added chess to his growing list of subjects taught. With a GMAT score of 780, he is excited to have another opportunity to pass on his love of math and standardized tests. When he is not studying or teaching, he enjoys basketball and board games with his wife and friends and playing with his four energetic boys.
Feedback From James’s Recent Students
“He does a very good job explaining concepts and how to make them easier to understand and grasp. For example, if he notices everyone is having a difficult time understanding a specific question or topic, he'll utilize his own personal method to explain it in order to make it more clear. You can tell he was a teacher at one point and this is a good thing.”
“I had an awesome time. I enjoyed James as he made the 3 hrs go by quickly.”
