Signed in as:
filler@godaddy.com
Proven Track Record in Admissions and Education
My name is Lisa Lau Aquino, and I’m an experienced, knowledgeable and nationally-recognized expert in the world of education. Drawing from my 37 years of experience as an Admission Director and educator at The Hamlin School, I possess all the vital qualities and established relationships to guide your family in navigating the complex school admissions process.
My Career History
As an educator throughout my entire adult life, I developed a passion for providing children with the educational foundation that prepares them for life. Across nearly four decades of experience in the independent school world, I acquired a deep understanding of what children need to thrive and grow.
For 16 years, I taught students from Kindergarten to Grade 8 at The Hamlin School, an all-girls institution in San Francisco, before becoming its Director of Admission for 21 years. I guided thousands of families through the admission process at Hamlin and offered support to families going through the process with sons at other schools. Along the way, I fostered strong relationships not just with parents, but also with preschool directors and kindergarten to grade 8 school admission directors throughout the San Francisco Bay Area.
I was the founding president of the Bay Area Directors of Admission (BADA), our local independent consortium of more than 100 schools in the San Francisco Bay Area. I served on several California Association of Independent Schools (CAIS) Accreditation teams and am familiar with schools locally as well as across the country.
I am currently a proud Trustee of The Bay School in San Francisco and served on a variety of school and education-related boards locally and nationally during the last three decades.
My Educational Background
I hold a B.A. in Developmental Psychology and a Minor in Education from the University of California in Berkeley. My graduate work was in Multicultural Education at the University of San Francisco.
My Family Background
I was first introduced to the world of independent schooling when I transferred from a co-ed school on Guam to The Hamlin School in Grade 5. My sisters eventually followed me through Hamlin and were lucky to attend all 9 years. Many years later, my daughter attended Hamlin as it was the best fit school for her and my family.
Although my son wanted to attend Hamlin (an all-girls school), he happily found a "home" at The Town School for Boys, a peer-independent, all-boys' kindergarten - Grade 8 school in San Francisco. Both of my children attended local independent co-ed high schools in San Francisco.