Meet Our Team

Meredith Freeman

Executive Director

Meredith joined the Sylvan Learning team in 2001 and is the Executive Director at Sylvan Learning  in Burlington, Charlotte, Greensboro, and Winston-Salem, NC.  She comes to Sylvan with a degree in Psychology from UNC Wilmington. She has held a variety of positions throughout her Sylvan career and decided in 2003 to make Burlington her home. Her favorite thing about her position is watching each student’s confidence grow and changing the “I can’t” attitude to “I can.”
Meredith’s favorite day at Sylvan…When a parent came up to me and asked me for a hug because we had done with her child something she thought was impossible.

Christina Fisher

Regional Director

Christina joined Sylvan in 2015 as a Center Director with 13 years of teaching experience. She graduated from East Carolina University with a Bachelor’s in Elementary Education, K-12 Reading Certification, and a Master’s in Instructional Technology. Christina served in many leadership roles as an educator but is most proud of being nominated for the Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science. She has a lifelong love of teaching and her passion for education is rewarded by Sylvan’s success stories.

Katie Dodds

Center Director

Since obtaining her undergraduate degree in Marine Biology in 2012 and her master’s in Elementary Education in 2016 from UNC Wilmington, Katie has been working as an Elementary School teacher. Katie’s favorite thing about Sylvan has been working with/forming relationships with students across all grade levels. In her free time, Katie loves paddle boarding, camping, and hiking with her boyfriend and dog, Sylvie.

Krystle Raynor

Director of Education

Krystle is the Director of Education at Sylvan Learning Center in Burlington and Greensboro, NC. She has worked with Sylvan Learning Center since 2011. She comes to Sylvan with a degree in Elementary Education from UNC Greensboro. Her favorite thing about her position is watching each student’s confidence grow and changing the “I can’t” attitude to “I can.” My favorite day at Sylvan… When a parent came up to me and shared that her student had come home with his best report card yet and how proud he had been of his progress. It was a true “I can’t” to “I can” attitude shift!

Cheryl Clark

Tutor

Cheryl has enjoyed working as a tutor at the Sylvan of Burlington for the last twenty years. She is a certified elementary and middle school teacher with degrees from Elon University and UNC-Chapel Hill. She currently teaches English 1 at an area high school. Her favorite thing about Sylvan is the opportunity to work with students of all ages. Her favorite days at Sylvan are when her students are excited and happy to be learning new skills.

Joshua Lopez

Tutor

Joshua moved to North Carolina after obtaining his Bachelor’s degree in Health Science and Biology in 2014 at Stony Brook University. Shortly after he arrived in North Carolina, he began teaching high school science in the Alamance Burlington School System. While working as a full-time teacher, Joshua earned his Masters degree in Science Education at East Carolina University with a GPA of 4.0. Joshua’s favorite part about teaching at Sylvan is the excitement he sees when his students finally understand a concept that they have had difficulty with for a long time. When Joshua is not teaching, he enjoys reading, movies, and going on adventures with his dog, Mills.

Nada Abu Khalaf

Tutor

Nada obtained a bachelor’s degree in mathematics with a minor in neuroscience from UNC Chapel Hill. She has worked at Sylvan centers for a couple of years now, and her favorite part is witnessing students overcome hurdles in their confidence and mindset in a subject. Nada’s realized how impactful it can be to use the appropriate teaching strategy depending on the student and the topic. She loves that there is a diverse set of students that she can work with at Sylvan. Outside of work, her hobbies include baking and spending time outdoors.