Sarah Hedges, Director of Student Services	Justin Strasburger, College Counselor
Erica Emery, Success Coordinator	Jennifer Bees, College Counselor
Jesenia Gervacio, College Counselor	Amy Markarian, College Counselor
Jennifer Kincaid, College Counselor	Meghan Stetson, College Counselor
Maxine Roca, College Counselor (Northeastern Co-op)	Fina Fontes, College Counselor (Northeastern Co-op)
Ginette Saimprevil, Site Director - Worcester	Miriam Rubin, College Counselor - Worcester
Yorky Mercedes, College Counselor - Worcester

Bottom Line counselors are a diverse group of individuals with one common goal: to support students along the path to a college degree. Here are some brief introductions to help you get to know them better.

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Sarah Hedges- Director of Student Services 

Birthplace Berkeley, CA Hometown Oakland, CA / Amherst, NH College University of New Hampshire; English

Interests: Reading, Eating, Traveling, Lying on the beach, Spending time with friends and family, Being outside

Most Memorable College Moment: Studying abroad in London my junior year. Most Memorable Bottom Line Moment: First seeing Claudine do the "Coming to America" dance.

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Erica Emery- Success Coordinator 

Birthplace Farmington, ME Hometown Farmington, ME College University of Maine, Farmington; Secondary Edu. English

Interests: Anything outside that gets me to move my body! Hiking, Biking, Frisbee, Camping, Snowboarding

Most Memorable College Moment: Volunteering with Habitat for Humanity in Florida. Most Memorable Bottom Line Moment: Any event that gets lots of students together in one place at one time like the Bottom Line Block Party or Red Sox game!

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Jennifer Bees- College Counselor 

Birthplace Reno, Nevada Hometown Reno, Nevada College Williams College; Art History

Interests: Being outside, pretending that I know how to cook, desserts (eating them), being silly, reading, running, hanging out with my friends and family, exploring Boston.

Most Memorable College Moment: Successfully sneaking onto the roof of more than 10 campus buildings throughout my four years at college. Most Memorable Bottom Line Moment: Probably when we went to trivia night and Erica was absolutely convinced that the mammal that kills the most humans in the United States was a moose. She was SO excited. (We were wrong; deer kill the most humans.)

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Jesenia Gervacio- College Counselor 

Birthplace Passaic, NJ Hometown Lynn, MA College Bryn Mawr; Psychology & Spanish

Interests: I love reading.

Most Memorable College Moment: So many to choose from but I'd have to say watching "Girlfriends" every week on Thursdays at 5pm on the 129er (our $129 couch from Ikea) with my good friend Rachel. Most Memorable Bottom Line Moment: I was meeting with one of my students this year and we were discussing how she would get to UMass Amherst. I suggested she take the Peter Pan bus. Her response was, "You want me to take the Pan!?!?" It was a classic moment.

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Jennifer Kincaid- College Counselor 

Birthplace Fajardo, Puerto Rico Hometown Lowell, MA College Columbia University; Neuroscience & Behavior

Interests: Playing basketball, Reading, Relaxing in the park, Watching Netflix, Dancing the night away

Most Memorable College Moment: Walking from Columbia's campus to Harlem the night Obama was elected president...youtube it and you'll see why it was so memorable! Most Memorable Bottom Line Moment: So far...walking to my desk on my first day and being surrounded by laughter from Ruth, Ginette, and Jesenia!

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Amy Markarian- College Counselor 

Birthplace Boston, MA Hometown Hopkinton, MA College Northeastern University; Human Services

Interests: Shopping, Football (Go Pats!), my dog Molly, Squam Lake, Nail Polish, Eating, Baking, Reading, Fashion

Most Memorable College Moment: I worked extremely hard my last semester at NEU and earned straight As! I was proud of myself for not slacking off during the last few weeks of college. It also taught me that I am capable of accomplishing goals that I set my mind to. Most Memorable Bottom Line Moment: Making care packages for the Success students is always an amazing sight! This year will be even better with 700 of them!

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Meghan Stetson- College Counselor 

Birthplace Metheun, MA Hometown Oneonta, NY College Williams College; English

Interests: Basketball, Hamilton College Football, Scrabble, Sewing, Photography, Yoga, Purple Cows

Most Memorable College Moment: Earning a spot in the Division III Sweet Sixteen with my basketball team. We beat the top-ten team to break their two-year, home-game winning streak to advance. Go Ephs! Most Memorable Bottom Line Moment: "Singing" the theme song from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in front of one of the College Training Camps. I don't sing.

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Justin Strasburger- College Counselor 

Birthplace Paris, France Hometown New Jersey & Maine College Bowdoin; Government & Education

Interests: Anything outdoors including hiking, camping, canoeing, kayaking, and skiing. I also love to cook, and watch and play all sorts of sports.

Most Memorable College Moment: Right before classes started each year, Bowdoin had a big lobster bake for everyone. It was always a great time to eat delicious food and catch up with people I didn't see over the summer. Most Memorable Bottom Line Moment: Getting to see 50 students excited to head off to college at our Training Camp day.

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Fina (Maria) Fontes- College Counselor (Northeastern Co-op) 

Birthplace Boston, MA Hometown Dorchester, MA College Northeastern University; Human Services

Interests: Writing poetry, Latin dancing, Puzzles (Sudoku), Jogging, Sail Boat Trips

Most Memorable College Moment: The 2007 Husky Hunt, which is a 24-hour scavenger hunt around the city of Boston for NEU students. Although our team did not come anywhere close to first, the experience was fun and educational and brought our group together. Most Memorable Bottom Line Moment: I am excited to learn more about my students through the college essay brainstorming and revision meetings; these meetings are a great opportunity to build a relationship with each of them.

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Maxine Roca- College Counselor (Northeastern Co-op) 

Birthplace Newark, NJ Hometown Brooklyn, NY College Northeastern University; Communications

Interests: Writing, Reading, Playing Sports, TV, Art, Food/Cooking, Dancing, Blogs

Most Memorable College Moment: Putting together a Spoken Word Event with professional artists Shihan, Lemon, and Gina Loring! They are amazing at what they do and it was great to meet them while working at the show. Most Memorable Bottom Line Moment: I look forward to meeting all of the students!

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Our Worcester Staff
Ginette Saimprevil- Site Director, Worcester 

Birthplace Port-au-Prince, Haiti College Bowdoin College

Interests: Watching movies, listening to music, and reading

Most Memorable College Moment: When I turned 21 my friends surprised me with a limo and a night out in Maine. Most Memorable Bottom Line Moment: Opening the Worcester office and being able to help 74 students last year!

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Yorkiana (Yorky) Mercedes- College Counselor, Worcester 

Birthplace Bronx, New York College College of the Holy Cross

Interests: Reading, watching movies, dancing, and hanging out with friends

Most Memorable College Moment: Spending all nighters with my close friends...even though I don't recommend it. Most Memorable Bottom Line Moment: I have one access student who came to an essay brainstorming meeting very emotional because of something great that just happened for her. Throughout the meeting, she was just crying her eyes out. It got to the point she had me tearing up, but at least we came out with two essay topics she feels confident she can write about.

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Miriam Rubin- Counselor, Worcester 

Birthplace Boston, MA College Connecticut College

Interests: Spening time with friends, taking walks in nice weather, being crazy with my family, people watching, good food

Most Memorable College Moment: Handing in my final college paper, which was twenty pages long! Most Memorable Bottom Line Moment: Being able to watch the Worcester office come together and grow.

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