Christine Strena

Clinician Christine holds an M.A. in Education from CSU East Bay, a post-graduate certification as an Educational Therapist through U.C. Riverside, and has earned her Professional designation for the Association of Educational Therapists. Christine joined SfL from a private practice where she specialized in working with K-12 students with dyslexia and language-based learning disorders. She […]

Julia Baker

Clinician Julia Baker holds an Ed.D. in Reading and Literacy from Capella University, holds an M.S. in Literacy Studies from Lehman College, and holds an M.S. in Multicultural Education at College of Mount Saint Vincent. For the past 20 years, she has taught Language Arts and Social Studies as a special education teacher in both […]

Phyllis Koppelman

CEO & Founder Phyllis holds her Master’s in Education from U.C. Berkeley and is a Board Certified Educational Therapist. Along with 30+ years in the classroom, Phyllis started as a sole practitioner until 2002, when she founded Strategies for Learning. She has trained teachers, developed curriculum, and spoken at seminars throughout California. Phyllis continues her […]

Michelle Kim Palasek

Clinician Michelle has worked in Oakland public schools for over a decade. She graduated from San Francisco State University and earned her Multiple Subject teaching credential in 2010. She brings a broad range of teaching experiences such as Kindergarten & Transitional Kindergarten teacher, Reading Interventionist, Dean of Instruction, and Assistant Principal. As an educator, Michelle […]

Stephanie Broytman

Clinician & Lead Reading Specialist Stephanie holds a Master of Arts in Learning Disabilities from Teachers College, Columbia University, and a Bachelor of Science in Childhood Education from Fredonia State. She is a certified special educator (Academic Language Therapist/ ALTA) with nearly 20 years of classroom experience in addition to the past several years spent […]