Degree
M.S. in Positive Psychology (MSPP)
Graduate study in the empirical science of well-being: character strengths, motivation, resilience, meaning, and the conditions that help people thrive.
About Holly
A researcher’s mind. A mentor’s warmth.
I am a positive psychology practitioner, educator, and researcher. My work lives at the intersection of what the science of well-being tells us and what actually helps a sixteen-year-old on a Tuesday afternoon.
Background & Experience
I have spent my career alongside young people—and the adults who care for them.
My work began in the classroom and grew outward: from teaching and mentoring students, to designing programs for schools, to studying the science of well-being at the graduate level. Over time I noticed the same pattern again and again—young people do not struggle because they lack potential. They struggle because no one has taught them how to understand their own minds.
That observation shaped everything that followed. As a positive psychology practitioner, I now translate research into practical, age-appropriate tools that students can actually use: naming emotions, noticing strengths, regulating attention, repairing relationships, and building a sense of purpose that holds up under pressure.
I work with independent schools and families as partners, not outside experts. The students I coach are known by their teachers; the faculty I train go back to the same classrooms the next morning. Sustainable change happens when the whole community learns the same language.
Education & Credentials
Grounded in the science of human flourishing.
Practice
Educator & Student Mentor
Classroom-tested experience supporting teens and young adults through the academic, social, and emotional demands of adolescence.
Research
Curriculum & Program Design
Evidence-informed workshops and curricula—including Becoming Uncommon—built for real school calendars and real adolescents.
Focus Areas
Positive psychology, emotional intelligence, mindfulness, neuroscience, human development.
Who I Serve
Independent schools, faculty and administrators, parents, teens and young adults.
Formats
One-to-one mentorship, small group coaching, workshops, faculty institutes, parent evenings.
How We Meet
In person on campus or virtually, scheduled around the school year.
Philosophy
Three convictions that shape every session.
01
See the whole person
Grades measure a fraction of a life. I begin with the student’s strengths, values, relationships and context—then build the plan.
02
Teach skills, not slogans
“Be resilient” is not a curriculum. Reframing, attention training, emotional literacy and goal setting are—and they can be practiced.
03
Start before the crisis
Prevention is quieter than intervention and far more powerful. Skills taught early become habits that carry into adulthood.
The Process
How we work together
Whether the engagement is one student or an entire division, the arc is the same.
- Step 01
Listen
A conversation with the school, family, or student to understand the real need behind the request.
- Step 02
Understand
Strengths, pressures and goals are mapped, with research and context in view.
- Step 03
Practice
Skills are taught, rehearsed and refined—individually, in groups, or across a faculty.
- Step 04
Flourish
Progress is reviewed together, so growth is visible and the community keeps it.
Let’s build something that lasts.
Tell me about your school, your students, or your family—and what you hope will be different a year from now.
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