FOUNDER AND MANAGING EDITOR

JANSON WOODLEE graduated from Yale University with a BA in music, with heavy emphasis on coursework within the cognitive science discipline. After graduation, he worked with Katzenbach Partners LLC (now part of Booz), an organizational and management consulting firm in New York City. At Katzenbach, he found ways to leverage his skills as an editor within the recruiting function and business development. After working with several premiere online editing and admissions consulting services, he is thrilled with the opportunity to launch his own organization that prides itself on true client collaboration, authentic writing couched in admissions expertise, and intellectual challenge.




FAVORITE QUOTE:
"There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all of time, this expression is unique...You have to keep yourself open and aware to the urges that motivate you. Keep the channel open...There is no satisfaction whatever at any time. There is only a queer divine dissatisfaction, a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive than the others."

- Martha Graham

FOUNDER AND EDITOR

 

BROOKE LYONS graduated from Yale with a BA in English. Before Yale, Brooke authored her first book, Scoliosis: Ascending the Curve, as a high school student in Connecticut. She has since worked in the publishing, entertainment and media industries and also as an academic tutor and admissions writing consultant. As co-founder of Ivy Eyes Editing, Brooke is excited to use her expertise to help clients think about how to best position their experience and skill sets. She is currently working on publication of her second book.

TECHNOLOGY DIRECTOR

 

JOE VARCA graduated from Middlebury College with a BA in Theater, and currently heads Ivy Eyes technology and product development. In addition to his work at Ivy Eyes, Joe is co-founder of Redux Productions, a film production company, and a founder of Speakvolume a design firm both based in New York City. He has served as both designer and web developer for companies such as Haus Interior, Roarke, and Gilbert & Company Consulting, and has designed and produced video for Sparkgroup and Macy's. His work in theatre and film has been seen at the TriBeCa Film Festival, the 48 Hour Film Project (Winner Best Film NYC, Best Director) and the NYC Midnight Short Film Competition (Best Horror Film, Best Directors). Original and adapted plays include I Was Tom Cruise (Winner Outstanding Play - NY International Fringe Festival 2006) and Amerika (Outstanding Ensemble - NY International Fringe Festival 2005).

Lily's writing career began on the fertile grounds of Maui, Hawaii. She studied Literature and Theater Studies at Yale and graduated with honors, Magna Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa. Lily has extensive experience in journalistic, academic, and non-fiction editing and writing, and catalyzing other creative types ready to make magic in the world. Her current work as a writer, poet, and editor is informed by almost a decade of study, certification, and international teaching in Eastern philosophies and psychosomatic therapies. Lily's writing explores the evocative realms of death, loss, sexuality, and belonging. She is the co-founder of Write to Wellbeing™ (offering strategic solutions for creative and personal success) and author of the forthcoming memoir The End: A Mother-Daughter Love Story.





FAVORITE QUOTE:
Reality is nothing but a collective hunch. —Lily Tomlin—

Katie Weiss graduated from Dartmouth College with a BA in Film Studies and recently received her MBA from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management.  Prior to business school, Katie worked in feature film production and development at companies including Miramax Films where she read piles of scripts to identify the best material and worked with screenwriters to hone their stories and make them commercially-viable.  Having struggled with how to best present her creative background to business school admissions committees, Katie can identify with the challenge of telling a cohesive and relevant narrative through application essays.   Katie looks forward to working with her Ivy Eyes clients to find and communicate the value of their unique backgrounds.

FAVORITE QUOTE:
“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose.” -- Dr. Seuss

MICHAEL WALKER Michael's writing career spans corporate America, theater, and academia. Michael is a graduate of Yale University, where he was a Theater Studies and English double major. He earned his Master's degree from The Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts and King's College, London. Michael worked as a Management Consultant at Katzenbach Partners for a number of years, where he trained as a corporate writer and helped edit and research a business book with the company's founding partner, Jon Katzenbach. Michael also works as an editor and grant writer for multiple not-for-profit organizations and has taught playwriting workshops at Columbia University and University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Before becoming a part of the Ivy Eyes team, Michael gained expertise in editing admissions essays as an SAT tutor and admissions consultant for college-bound high school students. When he is not editing essays, Michael is a professional playwright based in NYC.

EDITOR SPOTLIGHT

TRACI MAYNIGO is the author of A Girl's Guide to College--Updated Edition (Blue Mountain Arts, 2011), Spark Your Career in Book Publishing (B&N/Spark Publishing, 2007), and A Girl's Guide to College (Blue Mountain Arts, 2003). Traci received her B.A. in English from Yale University, and then moved to New York City to begin a four-year career in book publishing. She worked for several publishing houses, including Scholastic, Penguin, and HarperCollins, where she edited, copyedited, and proofread all genres of books--children's, teen/young adult, adult; fiction and nonfiction. She then went on to acquire her M.Ed. in Counseling Psychology from Columbia Teachers College, and is currently pursuing her Psy.D. in Clinical Psychology at Rutgers Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology. With eight years of freelance editing experience as well has having endured the admissions process several times, Traci is excited to share her expertise with her Ivy Eyes clients.

FAVORITE QUOTE:
"If you see a difference between where you are and where you want to be, consciously change your thoughts, words, and actions to match your grandest vision. . . . It will involve . . . a massive move to consciousness. What you will find out if you undertake this challenge is that you've spent half your life unconscious."--Neal Donald Walsch

INTERVIEW COACH

JIMMY JOHNSON graduated from Yale with a degree in Theater Studies. As an undergraduate, Jimmy gained recognition as the first student in the program to write, direct, and perform a new play as his senior project. After college, Jimmy worked as a recruiter for Katzenbach Partners, where he helped build a nationally recognized campus recruiting program and eventually managed the entire MBA recruiting function across over a dozen university campuses. Having spent four years interviewing undergraduate and MBA-level candidates at some of the nation’s best schools, Jimmy is an expert interview preparation consultant and resume editor. Jimmy brings his extensive experience in sales and marketing to help you highlight your own assets in a competitive hiring environment. If you’re preparing for an important interview, Jimmy will guide your rehearsals to a perfect performance so that you can land a starring role in your own career.

FAVORITE QUOTE:
“If you hear a voice within you that says, ‘You are not a painter,” then by all means, paint, and that voice will be silenced.” ~Vincent Van Gogh