Our Team
Paula Finn,
College Counselor
Anthony Russomanno, President
Counselor & Consultant
MA | MBA
anthony@aradvising.com | Phone: 949-214-6162
Anthony has been teaching and counseling over 30 years. He has done nearly everything in the test prep, education and admissions space – coordinator, teacher, tutor, consultant, counselor, presenter sales/marketing tactician, operator, partnership/business development manager, customer service rep and content developer. Most recently, he was the Capistrano Unified School District College and Career Coordinator for Futureology (sure a mouthful). He worked tirelessly leading the charge of making his nearly 15,000 high school students college and career ready. He was responsible for leading the programs such as College Fair, Roadmap to College Nights, Mock Testing, Webinar Series, Application Support Workshops, SAT-ACT Prep Rally, Parent Bootcamps, Athletic Recruiting Bootcamps, and Mock Case Study as well as guiding his counselors. He personally delivered over 200 expert presentations for his high schools on a variety of topics and held one on one appointments for hundreds of students and families per year. Prior to that he was the National Director for a leading prep company in which he created alliances with organizations that are also committed to providing valuable educational benefits to promote member loyalty and satisfaction.
Before starting his career in education, Anthony earned his BA in Psychology and Masters in Clinical Psychology from which he began a counseling career as a family therapist for individuals and families in crisis. He then turned to bring educational counseling to the forefront of the test prep marketetplace.
As a former high school teacher, licensed soccer coach, and family counselor, Anthony’s excellent interpersonal, problem solving, and coaching skills make him a highly skilled and sought after teacher, trainer, cousnelor, and tutor. He has been teaching test prep for over 20 years (SAT, ACT, GRE, GMAT, CBEST, SAT Subject Tests, Psych).
Anthony believes in the business maxim of “doing well by doing good.” He strives to reach a diverse range of students to share his advice and inspire them to give them an edge. Anthony is married and enjoys spending time outdoors with his two children. One who is now a freshman in college and the other is still in high school.
Education
-
College Counseling Certification
-
UC San Diego (completion 2016)
-
-
M.B.A., Specialization in Sales & Marketing
-
Keller Graduate School of Management
-
-
M.A., Clinical Psychology & Family Counseling
-
Pepperdine University
-
-
B.A. in Psychology
-
University of California, Irvine
-
Athletic Background
Anthony has been coaching or training athletes for over 25 years at the high school, club, college and youth sports levels. Anthony was a 3-sport athlete at Marlboro HS in New Jersey earning All-County and All-Conference in soccer, basketball and baseball plus All-State in soccer. At UC Irvine, a D-I university, he earned soccer team captain and MVP honors twice, All Conference and Big West Scholar Athlete of the Year. He also played baseball for a brief time but eventually focused on soccer because of his full-ride scholarship.
Anthony began helping students and parents with the recruiting process in 1994, when he was coaching competitively (Fountain Valley HS, Cypress HS + Wolfpack Club). He quickly realized that a majority of his players were struggling to attract attention from college ceoaches and helped his athletes and families through the process to help them avoid the most common pitfalls. Ever since he has been a "go-to" guide for this process.
​
While his kids were growing up, he coached club basketball for Kings Basketball Club and club baseball with the Sundevils in San Clemente, CA.
Welcome! I'm Paula Finn, and I'm passionate about helping families navigate the college admissions process with confidence and clarity.
Experience You Can Trust
With over 20 years of experience as a high school counselor in public schools across New York and Pennsylvania, I bring deep expertise to your family's college journey. As a Post Secondary Counselor, I've guided hundreds of students and families in the college selection, application and admissions process throughout the United States and abroad.
RECENT STUDENT ACCEPTANCES INCLUDE:
-
New York University
-
Cornell University
-
Northwestern University
-
US Military Academy
-
Northeastern University
-
Swarthmore College
Since 2000, I've also worked in the mental health field, giving me a unique understanding of the whole student, not just their academic profile.
My Approach
Too often, parents and students feel overwhelmed by college options without adequate support. That's exactly why I started my own practice—to provide the individual attention each family deserves.
I believe every student's story is unique, which is why I particularly enjoy helping students craft compelling, personal college essays that showcase who they truly are.
​
Personal Background
As a proud Scranton, PA native and first-generation college graduate, I understand firsthand the challenges of navigating higher education. I earned my B.A. in Psychology from St. John Fisher College (4-year basketball starter, 3 NCAA tournaments) and M.Ed. School Counseling from Kutztown University.
My athletic background includes being a 4-year starter NCAA basketball player and coaching for six years. Currently, my daughter plays D1 field hockey, providing me firsthand experience in today's recruitment landscape, including transfer portals and NIL deals.
What Families Are Saying
Real stories from families who've successfully navigated the college journey with Paula's guidance:
"Paula worked with our daughter all throughout her junior and senior year to ensure her applications and scholarships were complete. She was a major reason our daughter was accepted to the United States Military Academy, which was a dream of hers since early childhood. Paula provided her with guidance, confidence and support every step of the way."
Parent of USMA Cadet
"My son is a first-generation college student in the United States. Paula was able to guide he and I through the process of applying to colleges. She was always accessible to answer any questions we had and put our mind at ease. Paula was amazing, and I would highly recommend her services."
First-Generation College Parent
"My daughter was unsure of her college path when she began working with Paula. She is beyond thrilled that she got accepted to the college of her choice and is pursuing a degree in art. Paula was instrumental in ensuring she received merit-based scholarships ranging between $45,000-85,000 which helped defer the cost of college."
Parent of Art Student​
Jen Wendt,
College Counselor
Jen’s passion for college counseling began with her own college experience at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (Go Big Red!) Her work there as a mentor to new students sparked an interest in helping others find their passion and a place to flourish.
Jen comes to AR Advising with over ten years of experience helping students and families navigate the admissions and financial aid processes. She’s taught ACT prep, developed college planning curriculum for grades 9-12, and led large and small group workshops.
Her favorite project is always working with students start-to-finish on their applications. Jen’s students have gained admission at colleges coast to coast, from Big Ten universities to Midwestern liberal arts colleges to the Ivy League and everything in between. She lives in the Twin Cities area with her husband and two rambunctious rescue dogs.​
