our team

DEE CHOU
Founder

A multi-million dollar listing agent in the San Gabriel Valley, Dee is the founder, director, and chief evangelist of Breakthrough Training Center. Despite her success in real estate, Dee is most proud of her two children. Her mission in founding Breakthrough is to help students unlock their true character, gain confidence, and shine. Dee understands the importance and longevity of good communication skills, and is excited to bring her philosophy to both parents and students alike,  

---

Ray Chou
Director

Ray graduated from NYU Tisch Film in 2010 and has been teaching various subjects  for over a decade. He designed Breakthrough's curriculum in response to what he believed was a growing need for active, engaged youth who look beyond academics in the predominantly Asian American community of the San Gabriel Valley.  An avid storyteller and entrepreneur, Ray is also a founding partner at Mythopoeia, where he crafts modern myths and original worlds.  

---

Daisy Phillips
HEAD MENTOR

Daisy Phillips joined Breakthrough in 2014 as a coach with a focus on helping her students find their voice.  Daisy graduated from Claremont McKenna College with a B.A. in Economics-Accounting.  She worked PwC for five years before transitioning to Portfolio Manager where she took on the responsibilities of team deployment, conflict resolution, talent management, budgeting, and operations.  Daisy enjoys her role as a Coach at Breakthrough because it provides her an opportunity to help mentor students as she raises her kids from home. 

---

LYNNE CURRY
​coach

Lynne joined Breakthrough as a coach in 2017 to help students learn how to shape an essay and master some of the basic skills of good writing. She has many years of experience as a journalist writing about business issues internationally, as well as a background in teaching English composition and tutoring English as a second language. Lynne has written for a diverse array of publications, ranging from the Pasadena Weekly close to home to the Financial Times and Bloomberg Businessweek while she was based abroad. She graduated from Duke University and later obtained a master’s degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. Lynne enjoys working closely with students and is delighted when they begin to incorporate the techniques they’ve learned into their own writing.

​

---

Kimberly CHENg
​Coach

Kimberly graduated with a B.A. in Communication and Writing from UC San Diego, where she served as a news editor for their award-winning newspaper. Her career began in journalism, having first worked as a reporter/editor for the Beverly Hills Weekly, then as an editor for an international publishing company that houses several magazines. She joined UCLA's digital marketing team in 2015, before landing her current role as Vice President, Communications Manager at East West Bank. Kimberly has also been a private English teacher since 2010 and has traveled abroad to teach students in underserved communities. Her most rewarding endeavor has been helping others discover the importance of effective communication.
​

---

Miles Johnson
​​Coach

Miles graduated from Pomona College in 2020 with a B.A. in Economics and Media Studies. He has been teaching and editing college applications at Breakthrough since 2018. Miles has a background in innovative economic research and entrepreneurship. His senior thesis was used by a Silicon Valley startup to inform business decisions. As a student, he excelled in entrepreneurship competitions and was honored by Mayor Eric Garcetti for helping LA’s economy thrive. After graduation, Miles joined the growth & marketing team of a creator commerce platform. Through all of his experiences, Miles finds helping students write compelling college applications and building businesses the most rewarding.

​

---

GEORGINA CHIOU​​Coach

Georgina Chiou is an experience designer who specializes in interactive media and immersive as products. A graduate of the USC School of Cinematic Arts, her past clients include NASA, HBO, and Jaunt. Georgina’s work has been featured at the National Air & Space Museum, Google Arts & Culture, and the Student BAFTAs. 
​
​

---

Saran Uthayakumar​​Coach

Saran Uthayakumar is a graduating senior at UC Berkeley, where he majored in history and human rights. He plans to study international relations in graduate school and is the Breakthrough Model United Nations coach. He has participated in MUN competitions throughout California and the country for the past 9 years, as a former participant and a current judge. Saran encourages students to join MUN to learn more about complex world issues while developing their public speaking, research, and negotiation skills. Breakthrough’s award-winning Model UN team is growing and seeking driven and passionate students - please reach out to him at [email protected] if interested in joining!

​

---

Nathaniel Kweku​​
​Coach

Nathaniel Kweku is a Ghanaian-American writer, producer, and digital marketer. A graduate of USC’s Marshall School of Business and School Cinematic Arts, Nathaniel also completed his Masters in African Studies with a concentration in film / tv at UCLA.  Currently, he works full-time as an advertising manager, in addition to conducting qualitative research. Nathaniel previously spent 7 years volunteering with nonprofits that work to support and rehabilitate youth. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and enjoys mentorship, spoken word, weight-lifting, and cooking. ​
​

ali maclean
​​​Coach

Ali MacLean is a writer, director, and actor in Los Angeles. A graduate of Miami University and the LaJolla Playhouse Conservatory, Ali's award-winning plays have been produced and published internationally. She is a member of the Ensemble Studio Theatre’s Playwrights Unit, Antaeus Theatre’s Playwrights Lab, The Honor Roll, and the Dramatists Guild. Ali is also an award-winning filmmaker and has written for many TV programs. She is a member of the Imagine Impact Creative Network, the Women In Film Mentorship, the Respectability Lab and won the 2020 David Sedaris Humor Writing Prize.  ​

​

Peri Wallent​​​Coach

Peri is a Writing Lab coach at Breakthrough, where she works with middle schoolers and high schoolers on sharpening writing tools and crafting college application essays. When she’s not coaching at Breakthrough, Peri works at KPCC + LAist where she supports the making of local news and manages the organization’s TikTok. She is a recent graduate of Occidental College, where she studied Cognitive Science and worked as a writer and editor for the school’s award-winning student-run newspaper. In her free time you can find her chilling with her cat and camping and hiking her way around SoCal.

​

EVA BAUDlER​​​Coach

Eva studied English, History, and German at Loyola Marymount University, where she launched projects on resistance writing, mass atrocities, and family history. Her research about disability in Germany during World War II and postwar memorialization have been featured in the Los Angeles Times and University of Minnesota’s Central Europe journal. In 2019, she had the honor of curating an exhibit on the paintings and life of David Labkovski, a Holocaust and Gulag survivor. She earned the Leila Mikdadi History Award for interdisciplinary engagement and was interviewed for Scott Timberg's LA Times article on public interest in the rise of fascism globally. Aside from her fulfilling work as a Breakthrough coach, Eva teaches international students western history through films and is planning for graduate school.

​

---