Leslie Absher is an academic coach who helps middle and high school students navigate the waters of adolescence and school. She has a master’s degree in education from Harvard University and teaches test prep, time management and organization. In addition, she teaches writing, from the paragraph essay to advanced placement research papers. She encourages all of her students, those who have learning differences and those who do not, to listen to their own inner wisdom so that they can become strong advocates for themselves.
Leslie coordinated the Peer Tutoring center at Bishop O’Dowd High School in Oakland from 2010-2012. She taught study skills and communication strategies to peer tutors. Her goal was to help the school further develop the center as a school-wide support, but also to help it transition to being a teen led program.
Leslie has also taught creative writing and collage workshops at Covenant House, a youth shelter in downtown Oakland. She supplied poetry and collage materials that allowed youth to translate the experiences of their lives, both difficult and joyful, into works of art. Just as she taught them, they were in turn, teaching her.