Our Staff
Specialized Tutoring For Cuyahoga, Lake, Geauga, Summit And Other Ohio Counties.
Linnea Smith
President – Director of Home Instruction and Private Placements
Linnea Smith is the President of North Coast Education. Linnea worked for North Coast and CEI early in her career, and worked behind the scenes on the NCES Board for a decade prior to returning to North Coast full time. Linnea returned full-time to North Coast following 16 years working in management and development in the Broadway Theatre Industry.Linnea does an exemplary job matching our tutor qualifications to each student’s unique needs for maximum academic success. She coordinates services for families and students needing academic support, gifted needs, and advanced placement support. She is particularly sensitive to the highly specialized tutoring needs of students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs).
Linnea Smith has a degree from The George Washington University in Theatre, Psychology, and English. She attended Hawken Upper School which had a formative impact on her academic pursuits. She has also studied and implemented conflict resolution strategies.
As Carole Richards’ daughter, Linnea was raised to understand that each student is unique. Life-long exposure to different learning styles has enabled Linnea to see the distinctive needs for each student. She finds fulfillment in helping families find the best solutions to their educational needs. She excels at creative thinking and problem-solving.
Linnea has been happily married since 2005, and has two amazing daughters.
Sweytha Ravishankar
Director Of Ohio Scholarships Programs
Sweytha has a comprehensive knowledge of the requirements for the Ohio Autism and Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarships. She walks each family through the steps of applying, progress reports, and graduation. She coordinates services for families and students needing academic supports, OT, SLP or ABA therapies, and gifted needs. She is particularly sensitive to the highly specialized tutoring needs of students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs).
Sweytha has an elementary age son who attends Aurora Schools.
John Kusik – In Memoriam
August 9, 1934 – July 31, 2023 John’s kindness, sense of humor, smile, and creativity, are missed everyday.
https://clevelandmagazine.com/cleader/community/articles/tributes-john-kusik-leaves-a-literary-legacy
Community Leader article
Carole Richards
Chairman, Founder
(For almost 40 years)
She is Author of the much-acclaimed Richards Learning Systems program. This successful reading program uses proven multi-sensory-systematic methods to each language arts skills.
More recently, she created the fun and innovative “Sammy and the Magical Reading Chest” https://www.richardslearningsystems.com a 77 episode video series. With puppets, animation and children the teacher/parent is trained at the same time the children learn to read.
Former CEO, Eric Gordon, Cleveland Metropolitan School district supported the efforts to complete the program. Mark Lauterbach, Ph.D. will complete a three-year research study of the effects of the “Sammy” Program in ten Cleveland Schools. Dr. Lauterbach is the former student and colleague of Linnea Ehri, Ph.D. a nationally known literacy expert and researcher
Carole Richards is not only the Chairman, but is also the Founder of North Coast Education Services. Click here to read her biography.
Bonnie Weber
Scholarship Program Coordinator
Bonnie assists our Director of Ohio Scholarship Programs in a variety of ways. She is responsible for scholarship compliance and has been at NCES for more than a year. Bonnie worked for ATT for forty-one years in a variety of positions requiring detail-oriented tasks before she retired.
Loveleen Sharma
Bookkeeper
Loveleen was born and raised in India. She holds her Master's degree in Business Administration and has 7 years of experience in Human Resources, office administration, and accounting; wearing multiple hats.
She lives with her husband and two kids in Solon. Outside work, Loveleen enjoys going for long walks, biking, and spending time with family and friends.
She is a very dedicated person who takes pride in giving her best in everything she does. She is an asset to the team.
Jennifer Caccamo
Administrative Assistant
Jennifer Caccamo is a 2001 graduate of The University of Mount Union. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Media. Caccamo has almost 20 years of experience as a Department Coordinator at Cleveland Clinic. She managed special projects and assisted Cleveland Clinic leadership with clerical tasks and office management. She also has 15 years of communications experience including writing, graphic design, and social media. She is excited to bring her skills to North Coast Education Services and help local students and families.
Jennifer has three children. Two children are in high school, and one is in middle school at Chagrin Falls.
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Tutoring services for students and their families in Northeast Ohio and beyond. We take the time to match students with tutors to ensure the right areas of learning are developed. Our curriculum includes programs which are multi-sensory, systematic approaches to reading and math, as well as tutoring for all subjects.