Team

Candace Sahm MA Ed

 

Candace Sahm is a coach, educator, and has firsthand experience with ADHD. 

Candace holds a Master of Arts Degree in Special Vocational Education from George Washington University, and received her Bachelor’s Degree in Special Education and Elementary Education from the University of Maryland. She is also the Director of Positive Learning Experiences, a private coaching and tutoring company in Bethesda, Maryland.

Dynamic and innovative, Ms. Sahm is known for her innovation, advocacy, and coaching approach. Candace is a tireless champion for raising awareness about ADHD and its impact on peoples’ lives. In addition to coaching youth and adults, she has been involved with research on the benefits of IEPs and 504s. She also served on the Development Committee and the Presidential Committee for CHADD, Children and Adults with Attention Deficit.  Candace leads support groups for girls and adults with ADHD. Candace has JST Coach Training and Independent Educational Consultants Association (ICEA) training. She is also trained to help those with other learning disabilities and executive functioning challenges. For the past fourteen years, she has been teaching for Montgomery County Public Schools with the Interim Instructional Services Program. She works with students and families to help them work with the curriculum to stay on top of their classes while they are not in school due to emotional and health needs. With this work, Candace also attends IEP/504 meetings and stays in close communication with school counselors, teachers, and parents.

Memberships and Associations
Candace is an active member of the ADHD treatment community. Her memberships include:

 

Advocacy

Ms. Sahm recently headlined a local DC radio show on the topic “ADHD in Children and Adults: Early Intervention, Diagnosis, and Treatment, and Where to Find Support.” She was joined by well-known psychologists Dr. Gloria Vanderhorst, Dr. Bill d’Alelio, Dr. Phil Pearl, Chief of General Neurology at Children’s National Medical Center and Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Neurology GWU, and Dr. Jorge Rodriguez, Clinical Neuro-Psychologist also at Children’s Hospital and in private practice. Her advocacy work raising awareness about the link between ADHD and addiction earned her a 2008 Unsung Hero Award from the CARON Foundation, a renowned national addiction recovery organization. She is currently making a CD featuring experts in the fields of ADHD and Addiction.

Education & Experience

More About Candace (PDF)

Candace’s Professional Resume

Career Profile: How a Mid-Life Diagnosis Helped Me Become an Entrepreneur

Hey, ADHD Parents: Shoot for Progress, Not Perfection

 

Our Tutors and Team

Barbara McLain – Assistant Director

Barbara has been an educator for nearly 20 years. Her experience teaching English has been at both the high school and college level, in public and private schools.

Barbara earned a bachelor’s degree in English with a concentration in writing, and she holds two master’s degrees—one in teaching and one in English, with a specialty in rhetoric and composition.

Her teaching English began at Thomas Wootton High School in Montgomery County, MD, where she taught English 9, English 9 Honors, English 10 Honors, English 11 Honors, and AP English Language and Composition. During her tenure with MCPS, she also worked for the department of curriculum and instruction writing sample lessons, classroom resources, and practice test questions.

After relocating to Florida, Barbara accepted a position at the University of South Florida teaching college composition. While at USF, she served on the task force creating the framework for teaching composition online, personally piloted the course, and went on to train other instructors to teach composition both in person and online.

Barbara eventually transitioned back to high school teaching, her first love, for a job teaching English at Cardinal Mooney High School in Sarasota, FL. At Mooney, she served as English department chair, and taught English 9, English 9 Honors, English 12, and AP English Literature and Composition. During the 2019-2020 school year, she taught AP Seminar for the first time, and 100% of her students passed the Seminar exam.

Ollen Douglass – Tutor

Ollen is from Potomac, Maryland and currently studies Math at Towson University. He has been tutoring for ten years and is proficient in math up to Calculus 3.

Here was one of Ollen’s insights about working with a student: “Working with Zach was a very eye-opening experience for me. I saw someone who was very clearly smart, and talented, who just needed slight guidance in the right direction. In tutoring him, I realized how important it is for there to be different styles of tutoring, because like me, some people learn better in alternative ways. What I found most surprising was how I had to adapt my already different way of tutoring in order to provide the best service I could. I’m glad I was able to expand my skills, but more glad that I was able to help Zach succeed further in his studies.”

In his free time he enjoys dancing, DJing and listening to music.

Kim Stinson – Tutor

Kim has a BA in Spanish Language and Literature and a Master of Arts in Teaching. She has studied in both Spain and Mexico and has been teaching Spanish for 14 years.  She likes to make the different language concepts as easy for her students as a possible to understand by breaking it down into smaller parts for them. She also color codes concepts to make it more visual for the students. So when working with Kim, it’s a good idea to have 3 different color pens or highlighters.

Clare McVey – Tutor

Clare has a BA in History with a minor in Biology and a MS in Education with a concentration in Special Education. She taught high school special education in Indiana for four years before becoming a history teacher. She has taught a total of 8 years at the high school setting. Clare teaches a variety of social science courses including Honors World History, AP Human Geography, AP World History: Modern, and AP United States Government and Politics. She loves relating the topics being taught in the classroom with what is going on in the world today and how that relates to all students. When she is not teaching, she is coaching the boys and girls track and field teams at her high school and is an advisor for Model UN.

Kelsi Listman – Tutor

Kelsi received a B.S. in Mathematics and Psychology with a minor in Neuroscience from Bridgewater College. She has over 7 years of tutoring experience in mathematics, ranging from elementary to college-level courses. Her favorite math subject to tutor is precalculus with trigonometry. Kelsi also has experience conducting psychological research, so she is knowledgeable about scientific research methods and logic. In her free time, you might find her reading novels, baking tasty treats, and spending time with her nieces and nephews.

 

Kaitlyn Newman – Tutor

Kaitlyn has been an educator for over ten years with professional licenses in various states across the country. She earned a Master’s degree in education from the University of Delaware in 2018 and is in the final stages of completing a Doctorate of Education degree from Liberty University. Kaitlyn has experience working with learners of all ages K-12 and beyond and has taught in both the physical and virtual classroom. Supporting the goals and aspirations of her learners is one of her greatest joys, and one of the core beliefs in her pedagogy is that with the right tools, everyone can succeed.

Stefan McVey – Tutor

Stefan McVey has been a biology teacher for 10 years in Fort Wayne, IN at R. Nelson Snider High School, teaching all levels of biology from remedial to AP. He currently teaches Honors Freshman Biology and Principles of Biomedical Science (PLTW).   Stefan loves the natural world and expressing that love through teaching is his lifelong dream. As a teacher, his favorite part of my job is the growth he sees in his students. They come to me not trusting themselves, but with a little push they begin to see that biology education can be life altering.

Outside of education, he has 4 rowdy boys who are always keeping him on his toes or breaking something. But they are also what allows him to be a compassionate teacher.  Stefan cannot wait to show your students how fun science can actually be!

Kenny Hagins – Tutor and Mentor

Kenny graduated from Morehouse College in 2018 with a BA in Kinesiology. He is also a graduate of Gonzaga College High School here in Washington DC. Kenny also works as a Paraeducator for Montgomery County Public Schools, working with students at Thomas Pyle Middle School. He is excited to be part of ADHD Coaching for LIFE, LLC with Coach Candace.