I started a business so I could run a business the way I want to experience it as an employee. I value my past employment but at some point I realized that I cannot depend on others to create what I want to do for so many hours of my life. I wanted to build the business that I wished would have hired me when I started on-boarding and thinking of a new career mid-life. I want to spend my hours doing work that matters.  I want to have a professional identity and be paid for who I am and what I have to offer.  I want to work with people I can help.  I want to work with people I trust. I want to maintain my own boundaries in my life.  I think all those things make me a better coach, teach me things to teach my clients, and protect me from burnout.  I once met a man who loved his job so much that he was still answering emails at age 92.  Retirement was of no interest, because he actually was able to practice his passion and we wanted to do that long after a paycheck mattered.  It made me believe that if your job energizes you, you are in the right place. I am usually in that right place.

The Story Behind StudyAmp

Hey there!

At StudyAmp, we have a strong vision of our coaching methodology. Coaching is highly personal, and good fit is essential in a coaching relationship. The StudyAmp vision is outlined below. If this vision is not your vision, and you want coaching to happen differently, there are many coaches you can find who can help you, but we hope that you trust us to take the lead and guide your Student through their academic coaching journey! If you do, we are confident that trust will be well placed.

Learning is a Team Sport.

Students are more likely to benefit from coaching when they are not the only ones involved. Both Students and Parents will get coaching homework!. Don’t worry, as we dig into coaching, we identify specific, actionable things you can do to help.

What coaching is not:

Working with young people and their families in a coaching capacity is an awesome and enormous privilege. We appreciate your trust and look forward to launching this coaching journey!

Let’s do this!




Liz Hammond
Academic Coach and Founder, StudyAmp Academic Coaching

We are Student advocates first. 

Coaches have multiple clients, including the Student, Parents/Guardians, and other adults. We often interface with therapists, counselors, teachers, and others to inform coaching. StudyAmp Coaches will always prioritize the Student and act as their advocate. This means we approach adults with the intention of getting the student’s needs met, and we do not pressure the Student to meet any adult’s needs or expectations. 

Students feelings matter.

The nervous system and brain are set up so that feelings impact learning. This is not just true for the information your student learns in school, but it is also true for what your student has learned about school and the learning process itself. Coaching is not therapy…but also, emotional regulation is an executive function and a major factor in productivity. We may need to address feelings before we can address thinking, and that’s okay. 

Parents feelings matter.

Parents want the absolute best for their students, and so far, I have not met a single exception to that rule. You are a great parent! Parents also often experience fear - about their kids’ well-being, performance, future, career prospects, etc. Students internalize Parents’ emotional experiences, so honoring Parent emotions is also a key part of the coaching experience. If you experience strong feelings (positive or negative) about what is happening with your student in school or coaching, please let me know! I aim to work with you in good faith, trust, and as a team.

Coaching is purpose driven.

StudyAmp Coaching uses a systematic approach to solving common executive function challenges that impact learning. We don’t just show up to discuss the emergency of the day; instead, we work methodically and proactively to achieve desired outcomes. We are also set up to be flexible and shuffle between priorities. Coaching inevitably changes as we progress, and we actively invite parent and student feedback to inform our goals as we go.

Coaching Takes time.

This means we expect both coaches and students to honor the time set aside for coaching. It means that we expect Students to devote regular time to executive function and strategic study activities, even outside of coaching meetings. Students don’t feel it at first, but time spent on coaching activities will ultimately save students time overall. As time passes, students learn more about learning, experience the benefits of new systems, practice applying learning strategy and systems in new situations, and methodically work toward building and using those tools independently. 

Creative solutions are real solutions.

Often, the timelines, processes, and institutions around students do not meet student needs. In coaching, we try to identify and fill those gaps. Many students excel when their unique needs are met. It may be a matter of simply being offered the chance to learn with different administrative processes, grading systems, testing regimens, timelines, narratives of success, workloads, teachers, curricula, etc. Changing the status quo can be scary, but it’s also why you’re here.

The best education is learning how to learn.

Educators are in the unfair position of preparing students for a work future that they have never seen. WIth the pace of technical, industrial, and social change happening, education has become less about mastering a set of material and more about building the skills to master the new information and skills that meet the student’s needs. What information do I need? What skills do I need? How do I make it happen independently? By understanding the process, Student can control their own success and not be fully dependent on any one curriculum, discipline, location, teacher, or boss. Once a Student knows what makes them thrive, they can exercise this insight to make excellent choices and move forward, at their speed, around all facets of life.  

Students write the story of their lives.

In Coaching we are co-authors of sorts. This means helping Students become aware of their mental models, challenging those models with data and practice, and reflecting on our efforts so that everything becomes a learning experience. By doing this we untangle fears, calm the system, focus, strategize, achieve, and learn that change is in our control. Because this is so powerful, we proactively identify, name, learn from, and celebrate the incremental efforts that lead to big success

Coaching is honest and vulnerable.

I aim to create an atmosphere where mistakes and failure are welcomed so as to de-escalate their power and prevent students from becoming paralyzed or avoiding challenges. I choose to invite experimentation, exploration, messy headlong action, data collection, and reflection to inform student’s emerging beliefs about their own abilities and learning situation. I aim to name my own mistakes too. No matter your student’s grades or challenges, I want them to feel safe with me and to look forward to our time together.

Coaching is not tutoring, doing work for your student, therapy, teaching, or homework help. Coaching is not a path for dialing up expectations of your Student. Coaching is not conjuring motivation or sudden behavior change. We believe that Students have their whole lives to learn and do everything they need and want to learn and do. We meet them where they are, take small and doable steps, and help meet Students’ immediate needs so they can get on with the good stuff!

Liz Hammond