Niara Valério

A math and science specialist with a B.A. from Harvard University and an MPA in International Finance and Economic Policy from Columbia University, Niara has tutored and homeschooled for the past decade. Niara has a heart for students who struggle in traditional learning environments or have limited access to educational opportunities. She began by teaching SAT classes to high-risk students in the South Bronx, where she noticed a gap. Many service providers did not know how to connect emotionally with minority students and they were not leveraging technology to address the unique cognitive needs of high-risk students. This experience seeded the idea for the company that Niara co-founded, Learnabi, a personalized learning ed-tech startup that provides high-risk students with academic support through their mobile devices.

In 2020, Forbes named Niara among its “30 Under 30" in education for her work with Learnabi, which has reached thousands of students and helped them meet or exceed academic standards.

In Niara’s own private tutoring and homeschooling practice, she targets traditional curriculum objectives by using a holistic approach and building an active partnership with each tutee’s family. With her mentorship, students develop problem solving skills, the resilience to handle their responsibilities, and pride in their individuality. She has helped students grades 1-12 with a wide range of subjects including Common Core, Exeter Math, Singapore Math, and private school chemistry and physics.