About College Consulting Services
The college experience can be wonderful - a time of academic challenges, new environments, and the first step toward an exciting future. The college selection and application process, however, can be frustrating, with so many choices, lengthy applications, essays, short answers, and questions about financial aid.
At College Consulting Services, we can help in many ways. We broaden the scope of the college list to ensure that you are not ignoring excellent although lesser-known schools that are a good fit for you. We have personal insights gained from visiting hundreds of colleges and, therefore, we can give you a much deeper understanding of a college than a catalog or web site can offer.
It is our goal to match you to the schools that will provide the best educational experience for you!
CCS' professional staff make the college application/selection process more rewarding by:
providing one-on-one consulting and individual goal-setting sessions
designing a course of action including application and essay scheduling to meet institutional guidelines
minimizing college visitations: we do our homework so that when you visit a college you will already have some background about the college's degree programs, location (i.e., urban or rural), housing and cost
assisting with career planning and referrals to financial assistance professionals
About our Executive Director, Charlotte Klaar
While searching for colleges with her own daughters, Charlotte Klaar became acutely aware of the struggles young people and their parents go through during the college selection and admissions process. She realized there was a need for someone to step in to assist families with this sometimes stressful experience. Charlotte's career experiences as a manager with IBM and a teacher, and her life experience as a parent, inspired her to establish College Consulting Services.
Charlotte earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Liberal Studies from the University of the State of New York, a teaching certificate from William Paterson University, and a Master of Science degree in Interdisciplinary Science Studies from Johns Hopkins University. She has done significant graduate work in the area of family psychology and is well-versed in the issues facing adolescents and their parents. In addition, Charlotte has been trained to administer and interpret both the Holland Self-Directed Search (SDS) and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI).
She is a Certified Educational Planner and holds membership in the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC), the Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA), the Higher Education Consultants Association (HECA), and the Potomac and Chesapeake Association for College Admissions Counseling.
Charlotte has extensive experience working with students and their parents. She has held various leadership positions with the Girl Scouts and several Parent Teacher Organizations in New Jersey (Packanack School), Maryland (Julius West Middle School and Richard Montgomery High School) and Massachusetts (Algonquin Regional High School), as well as serving as the first co-chair of the Algonquin School Council. Mrs. Klaar is a member of the Corridor Nine Area Chamber of Commerce and serves on their School/Business Partnership Committee. She has twice earned the Partnership's Business Recognition Award given to businesses that support education and area schools through their individual efforts.
Charlotte is an active professional member of the IECA and was elected to serve on its Nominating Committee. She has also served for the past seven years as an instructor to new and prospective consultants in IECA's Practices and Principles Training Institute and has twice served as Chair of the Institute. Currently, she is teaching a course in the College Counseling program for UCLA Extension.
A life-long learner herself, Charlotte consistently strives to keep her professional knowledge up-to-date both by visiting colleges nationwide and by staying aware of changes in her profession.
About Nancy Federspiel, Director
Nancy Federspiel joins College Consulting Services with a Masters degree in Counseling as well as experience as a career counselor at the higher ed level. She also brings to the table personal life experience as a parent to three children and knowledge of the business world. Nancy holds certification in high school guidance from the Massachusetts Department of Education after supplementing her Masters in Counseling with a year-long practicum at Nashoba Regional High School.
Nancy earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and Urban Studies from Brown University and has been an Alumni Admissions Interviewer for Brown for the past eighteen years.
After college, Nancy worked in the advertising industry for both Hill, Holliday and Arnold Advertising in Boston for eight years. In the mid 90s, Nancy committed to a career change and earned a Master of Science degree in Student Development and Counseling from Northeastern University. After completing her practicum experience in career counseling at Brandeis University, she took a position as Career Counselor for the F.W. Olin School of Business at Babson College.
Currently, Nancy is a professional member of the Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA), and she has successfully completed IECA's Summer Training Institute for educational consultants. Additionally, Nancy is a member of the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC). She has committed to ongoing professional development opportunities with these and other organizations in the field of college admissions counseling.
Nancy lives with her family in Bolton, Massachusetts, where she is quite involved in the community. She served as President of the Friends of the Bolton Public Library for a number of years and then became Chairperson of the Board of Library Trustees. She is also involved in the school community as a classroom volunteer and a coach.
