Team

Guiding Educational Innovation

Russell Ruthen, Founder

Russ credits his success to his immigrant grandparents who worked tirelessly to provide the best possible education for their children. He practices the growth mindset through his personal and professional endeavors, guiding students and colleagues through projects large and small. As a veteran faculty member at Worcester Academy, he developed the foundations for Just Academics through his experiences as a physics teacher and leader of the graduation-projects program. His previous professional endeavors include founding a successful non-profit (Day Before Birth) in the healthcare sector as well as a decade of product management, launching $100-million products and services in information technology at Cisco Systems. Russ earned a bachelor's degree in Physics from Cornell, a master's degree in science education from WGU and an MBA from Harvard. He and his spouse raised three children, inspiring ethics, curiosity, creativity, persistence and self-reliance that has served them well in college.

Russ has a pragmatic view of teaching. He recognizes that students have diverse backgrounds, different learning styles and a variety of interests. The teacher’s challenge is to meet these different needs and move each student up the learning curve by creating an environment based on best practices derived from educational research.

Licensed Massachusetts Academic Teacher Physics: 505509

Board of Directors

Patricia Peterleitner

The Founder and CEO of Journey, Patty is a passionate professional and credentialed career educator with more than 30 years of experience. Over her academic career, she served as the head of an upper school and as the Director of Academic Support for a strategy-based learning center. Her authentic spirit, courage, and exceptional interpersonal skills are her brand. Patty has a natural capacity to influence, to connect, to empower, and to impact—revealed in her notable achievements as math and science instructor, administrator, advisor, consultant, mentor, presenter, and coach. In addition to her background as a leader in education, Patty parlays her experience as an innovator in business, non-profit boards, and civic volunteerism to her coaching methodology. She recognizes that individual and academic success is cultivated through extracurricular experiences, encouraging leadership competencies, and vision. Patty differentiates her methodology by reinforcing that what is learned in the classroom should also be experienced in real-world pursuits—internships, externships and creative experiential learning opportunities.

Geetanjali Akerkar, MD, AGAF

Geetanjali is a healthcare entreprenuer and Boston Magazine "Top Doctor" Award Winner for 6 consecutive years. She has served in clinical and business leadership roles at Gastro Health, Digestive Health Specialists and Northeast Endoscopy, She is a Clinical Instructor in Medicine at Beth Israel Hospital at Harvard Medical School and is a member of the Cornell University Council.

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