The School Counseling Group is a tight-knit team of professional consultant counselors who utilize a collaborative and compassionate approach to guide and support families through the process of finding the best educational and therapeutic placements for children, adolescents and young adults. Collectively, our consultants have spent decades in a variety of settings as teachers, administrators, counselors and coaches. When you work with any one of the consultants, you are supported by the experience and wisdom of the entire team.
PETER STURTEVANT, DIRECTOR
Peter A. Sturtevant, Jr. became Director of The School Counseling Group in 2000, after an eighteen year career in independent schools. From 1992-2000, Peter served as Head of School at The Gunston School in Centreville, Maryland. Previously, Peter worked for ten years at the Maret School in Washington, DC, teaching English and humanities, coaching, advising seniors in the college admissions process, and serving as Senior Master of the Upper School. Peter is a Washington, DC native, attended the Potomac School and Landon School before receiving his B.A. in Religion from Bowdoin College, his M.A. in English from Middlebury College, and his M.A.L.S. from Skidmore College in Counseling Philosophy. In 2016, Peter became a board-certified coach (BCC) through the Center for Credentialing and Education. He is a member of WISER, TABS, NATSAP and IECA.
JEN PARSELL, DIRECTOR OF CLIENT SERVICES
Jen Parsell has served as the Director of Client Services for The School Counseling Group since 2013. In this role, she is often the first point of contact for all new client inquiries and supports families throughout the placement process. Jen communicates regularly with the counselors and the director and helps keep The School Counseling Group organized behind the scenes. Jen earned her B.A. in Psychology from Washington University in St. Louis. Prior to joining The School Counseling Group, Jen worked as an early childhood educator and administrator for over ten years. She began her career in Boston, before moving to Chicago and finally settling in Washington, DC. Jen also spent two years overseas in Tel Aviv, Israel working as the Community Liaison Office Coordinator at the US Embassy, where she provided support and assistance to American families living and working in Tel Aviv.
NICK EVERDELL, GRADUATE AND PROFESSIONAL SCHOOL CONSULTANT
Nick Everdell is a seasoned admissions professional with more than eight years of experience at some of the country’s most respected law schools. From 2008 to 2014 he served as Associate Director of Admissions at Columbia Law School, where he reviewed and voted on more than 16,000 applications. He then spent two years as Director of Recruitment at Yale Law School, where he was deeply involved in managing Yale’s unique admissions process. Nick has worked as an educational consultant since 2016, and has helped hundreds of clients gain admittance to some of the nation’s best law, business, and graduate programs. Nick holds a BA in Russian Studies from Cornell University, and an MA in Education Leadership from Columbia. As the child of two independent school teachers in Maryland, he developed at an early age a passion for helping people find and achieve the educational path that leads to the greatest personal and professional success. Nick grew up splitting his time between the shore of the Chesapeake Bay and the coast of Maine, and as such, loves spending as much time on the water or in the woods as possible. He currently lives in Connecticut with his wife and two young sons.
TOM HARVEY, THERAPEUTIC CONSULTANT
Tom Harvey earned his B.A. in Psychology from Williams College and his Postgraduate Diploma in Education (Educational Psychology) from Massey University in New Zealand. Upon graduating from Williams, Tom worked in the financial industry in Boston before discovering his true passion for supporting adolescents and families. Tom brings a wealth of experience to The School Counseling Group having been employed for twenty years in various therapeutic schools and programs as a wilderness field instructor, counselor and director. During that time, he helped design, launch and manage programs to enable teens to reach their full potential through building positive peer and family relationships. Tom has travelled extensively overseas including living and working in Thailand, Mexico and New Zealand. He is a licensed mathematics teacher as well as a certified scuba instructor. Tom joined The School Counseling Group after living in New Zealand with his wife and two sons and serving for four years as the Director of Boarding at Whangarei High School.
BRIE JEWELER-BENTZ, DIRECTOR OF COLLEGE COUNSELING
Dr. Jeweler-Bentz joined the School Counseling Group in 2009 and is a native of the Washington, DC area. She attended Montgomery County public schools, earned a B.A in Psychology from the University of Michigan, and received her Psy.D. in clinical psychology from the Chicago School of Professional Psychology. She has several years of clinical experience in university counseling centers, including DePaul University in Chicago and The George Washington University in Washington, DC. Dr. Jeweler-Bentz has also taught at the undergraduate and graduate level and has been a private academic tutor and college advisor for local area high school students. Prior to her graduate studies, Dr. Jeweler-Bentz worked as an undergraduate admissions officer for the University of Michigan. She was responsible for reviewing prospective freshman application materials and for making subsequent recommendations for admission. Dr. Jeweler-Bentz has a clinical interest in the stress that often accompanies the college application process, and she has given several lectures on the topic.
MARI MCDONALD, COLLEGE CONSULTANT
Mari McDonald is a college consultant who works from a holistic perspective to enhance a deeper understanding of each student she works with – learning what the student’s unique strengths are and offering guidance on how to articulate those strengths in order to maximize success in the college application process. A Washington, D.C. native, Mari returned to our nation’s capital after living in Northern Ireland where she earned a B.A. from Queen’s University. Mari’s commitment to D.C. area parents and students runs deep. She began her professional career at the Holton Arms School and since then has contributed to several other independent school communities, including The Madeira School, The Lab School, and most recently, her alma mater, St. Andrew’s Episcopal School. Mari has also served on the board of The Sheridan School for ten years and was appointed as Sheridan’s Head of School Search Committee Chair.
KATHERINE ROSS, BOARDING SCHOOL AND COLLEGE CONSULTANT
Katherine Ross joined The School Counseling Group in 2015. She received her BA in English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and received a MA in Counseling and Human Development from The George Washington University. Katherine is a nationally certified counselor and licensed graduate professional counselor and is an associate member of IECA. Prior to joining the team, Katherine worked in public relations and then in school development as Director of Parent Programs at St. Patrick’s Episcopal Day School. More recently, she worked at a private counseling practice in Bethesda, Maryland, and provided individual and group counseling to students, families, and young adults at The British International School of Washington, The Nora School, Alice Deal Middle School, and The George Washington University Community Counseling Services Center. These positions have afforded Katherine experience working with a diverse population, whose learning, emotional, and social functioning cover a wide spectrum. Katherine currently works out of our Charlotte, NC office working with students both in Charlotte and the surrounding areas and in the DC Metro area.
JEWEL WALWYN, COLLEGE CONSULTANT
Jewel Walwyn joined The School Counseling Group in 2015 with over twelve years of experience in a range of schools serving a variety of distinct missions, as well as working for five years as a private tutor. After earning a M.A. in Education and a B.A. in English from the University of Virginia, Jewel was the Assistant Director of Admissions at Sweet Briar College, and later led college counseling programs at four different local schools in Maryland, DC, and Virginia, including Oakcrest School (Va.), St. Paul’s School for Girls (Md.), FW Ballou Sr. High School (DC) and Takoma Academy (Md.). As a college counselor who has supported the process from the applicant as well as the admission side, Jewel has guided hundreds of families through the college application process. Jewel enjoys giving grade-specific presentations about college readiness, scholarships and financial aid.
LINDSAY WHITE, DAY SCHOOL CONSULTANT
Lindsay White joined The School Counseling Group in 2009. She is a native of Pennsylvania and attended both public and independent schools before attending high school at Garrison Forest School in Baltimore as a boarder. After graduating from St. Lawrence University, NY, with a B.A. in Sociology and English, Lindsay worked briefly in advertising and then earned an M.A. in School Counseling from New York University. Lindsay has many years of experience serving both as a school counselor and an admissions representative. She has worked in the admissions office at the Maret School, was the Director of Counseling at The Episcopal High School in Alexandria, VA, and was a counselor at East Manhattan Outreach School. Combining her counseling background and her experience in admissions allows Lindsay to guide families through the school admissions process with confidence.