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Stanford Math & CS | USAMO, RSI | Meta | Perfect SAT & ACT
Laney Z.

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Hourly Rate: $200
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About Laney

Bio

I'm a Stanford-trained mathematician and software engineer based in the Boston area. I've loved math for as long as I can remember, and I hope to help your student love it too!

I work with middle school, high school, and college students. I can help with competition math (AMC, AIME, etc.), math from pre-algebra through advanced college-level mathematics, computer science at any level, and standardized test prep (SAT, ACT). My goal is to help students truly understand the material rather...

I'm a Stanford-trained mathematician and software engineer based in the Boston area. I've loved math for as long as I can remember, and I hope to help your student love it too!

I work with middle school, high school, and college students. I can help with competition math (AMC, AIME, etc.), math from pre-algebra through advanced college-level mathematics, computer science at any level, and standardized test prep (SAT, ACT). My goal is to help students truly understand the material rather than just memorize procedures. I tutored through high school and college, taught introductory CS as a section leader at Stanford, and have focused on mentoring others throughout my professional career.

As for my background: in high school, I was a USAMO qualifier, a 4xAIME qualifier, a USAMTS gold medal winner, and a member of Ohio's ARML team. I placed second at the Ohio High School Mathematics Olympiad. I attended Canada/USA Mathcamp and the Research Science Institute at MIT, where my research earned me recognition as a Siemens Competition Semifinalist. I graduated as valedictorian, earned 5s on all 11 of my AP exams, and scored a perfect 2400 on the SAT and 36 on the ACT with 800s on five SAT II subject tests, earning recognition as a US Presidential Scholar and National Merit Scholar. I went on to earn a BS in Mathematics (GPA 4.27) and an MS in Computer Science (GPA 4.21, specialty in AI) from Stanford, where I conducted AI research at SAIL under Prof. Daphne Koller and placed in the top 500 on the Putnam Competition twice.

After Stanford, I spent 14 years as a Software Engineer at Meta, where I served as tech lead on multiple high-impact projects, co-authored a paper published at SOSP 2021, spoke at international conferences, and served as Boston Site Lead during a period of rapid office growth. I conducted over 400 technical interviews and ran the new engineer Bootcamp program in Boston for several years.

I would love the chance to work with your student and share my excitement for math and computer science!

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Education

Stanford University
Mathematics
Stanford University (Computer Science)
Masters

Policies

Schedule

Laney hasn’t set a schedule.

Approved Subjects

ACT Math

ACT Math

I scored a perfect 36 composite on the ACT, including an 36 on the math section. I hold a BS in Mathematics from Stanford with a 4.21 GPA, and I have a background in competition math (USAMO qualifier, 4xAIME qualifier). I tutored math throughout high school and college. I take pride in helping students not just memorize tricks but genuinely understand the material so they can handle any problem the test throws at them.
Algebra 1

Algebra 1

I hold a BS in Mathematics from Stanford with a 4.21 GPA and scored a perfect 2400 on the SAT and 36 on the ACT. My competition math background (e.g. AIME and USAMO qualifier) means I have a deep understanding of the algebraic foundations that underlie all of higher mathematics. I tutored math throughout high school and college, and I focus on helping students visually understand the underlying concepts rather than memorizing procedures or formulas.
Algebra 2

Algebra 2

I hold a BS in Mathematics from Stanford with a 4.21 GPA and scored a perfect 2400 on the SAT and 36 on the ACT. My math coursework plus my background in competitive math (AIME and USAMO qualifier) give me a deep understanding of the algebraic foundations that underlie all of higher mathematics. I tutored math throughout high school and college, and I focus on helping students visually understand the underlying concepts rather than memorizing procedures or formulas.
AMC (Competition math)

AMC (Competition math)

I am a USAMO qualifier who also qualified for the AIME four times, earned a USAMTS gold medal, represented Ohio on the ARML team, and placed second overall at the Ohio High School Mathematics Olympiad. I attended Canada/USA Mathcamp and the Research Science Institute at MIT. I earned a BS in Mathematics from Stanford, where I placed in the top 500 on the Putnam Competition twice. I tutored math throughout high school and college and am very familiar with the AMC 8, AMC 10, AMC 12, and AIME problem styles and strategies. I would love to help your student build the problem-solving skills and mathematical intuition needed to excel in competition math.
Calculus

Calculus

I hold a BS in Mathematics from Stanford with a 4.21 GPA and scored a perfect 5 on the AP Calculus BC exam. I also excelled in competition math in high school (4 time AIME qualifier, USAMO qualifier) and college (placed in the top 500 in the Putnam competition twice). I tutored math throughout high school and college, and took relevant coursework at Stanford including Honors Multivariable Mathematics, Lebesgue Integration and Fourier Analysis, and Fundamental Concepts of Analysis. I focus on helping students visually understand the material rather than just memorizing procedures. I am comfortable teaching everything from the basics of limits and derivatives through multivariable calculus and introductory real analysis.
Computer Programming

Computer Programming

I hold a BS in Mathematics and an MS in Computer Science (specializing in AI) from Stanford, where I took courses in algorithms, machine learning, AI, cryptography, natural language understanding, and computer systems, earning A+ grades throughout. I conducted AI research at Stanford's AI Lab under Prof. Daphne Koller and served as a section leader for introductory CS courses. I then spent 14 years as a Software Engineer at Meta, serving as tech lead on multiple major projects, co-authoring a paper at SOSP 2021, and speaking at international conferences including ReactEurope and Nordic.js. I conducted over 400 technical interviews at Meta and am deeply familiar with what strong programming fundamentals look like at every level.
Computer Science

Computer Science

I hold a BS in Mathematics and an MS in Computer Science (specializing in AI) from Stanford, where I took courses in algorithms, machine learning, AI, cryptography, natural language understanding, and computer systems, earning A+ grades throughout. I conducted AI research at Stanford's AI Lab under Prof. Daphne Koller and served as a section leader for introductory CS courses. I then spent 14 years as a Software Engineer at Meta, serving as tech lead on multiple major projects, co-authoring a paper at SOSP 2021, and speaking at international conferences including ReactEurope and Nordic.js. I conducted over 400 technical interviews at Meta and am deeply familiar with what strong CS fundamentals look like at every level.
Data Structures

Data Structures

I earned an MS in Computer Science from Stanford, where I took courses in algorithms, mathematical foundations of computing, automata and complexity theory, computer organization and systems, and optimization and algorithmic paradigms -- all with A+ grades. I served as a section leader for Stanford's introductory CS sequence, helping students master foundational programming and data structures concepts. After Stanford, I spent 14 years as a Software Engineer at Meta, where I regularly worked with complex data structures in production systems at massive scale. I conducted over 400 technical interviews at Meta, many of which tested data structures and algorithms directly.
Discrete Math

Discrete Math

I hold a BS in Mathematics and an MS in Computer Science from Stanford, where I took Mathematical Foundations of Computing (A+), Introduction to Combinatorics and its Applications under Prof. Persi Diaconis (A+), Mathematical Logic (A), and Elementary Theory of Numbers (A+). My math competition background — including qualifying for the USAMO — gave me a deep grounding in the combinatorial and number-theoretic thinking that underpins discrete math. I am comfortable teaching discrete math at the high school and college levels.
Geometry

Geometry

I hold a BS in Mathematics from Stanford with a 4.21 GPA and scored a perfect 2400 on the SAT and 36 on the ACT. As a USAMO qualifier and four-time AIME qualifier, I have extensive experience with both Euclidean geometry and the more creative geometric problem-solving that comes up in math competitions. I tutored math throughout high school and college, and I like to help students visually understand the material rather than memorizing procedures or formulas. I am comfortable teaching geometry at any level, from basic proofs and theorems through the more advanced geometric concepts that appear on standardized tests and competitions.
JavaScript

JavaScript

I spent 14 years as a Software Engineer at Meta, where JavaScript was central to my daily work across multiple major projects. I was an early contributor to Relay, Meta's open-source JavaScript data-fetching framework for React applications, and spoke at ReactEurope and Nordic.js about my work. I hold an MS in Computer Science from Stanford specializing in AI, and served as a section leader for introductory CS courses. I can help students learn JavaScript from scratch or work through more advanced topics.
Logic

Logic

I hold a BS in Mathematics and an MS in Computer Science from Stanford, where I studied Mathematical Logic (A) and Mathematical Foundations of Computing (A+), as well as automata and complexity theory. My background in pure mathematics — including coursework in set theory, modern algebra, and real analysis — gives me a strong foundation in formal reasoning and proof. I also have deep experience with the logical thinking required in computer science through my 14 years as a Software Engineer at Meta.
PHP

PHP

PHP was my primary programming language throughout my 14-year career as a Software Engineer at Meta, where the codebase is built on Hack, Meta's PHP-derived language. I used PHP/Hack daily across a wide range of projects, including real-time infrastructure, data-fetching frameworks, and privacy and integrity systems, serving as tech lead on multiple major initiatives. I have a deep understanding of PHP's syntax, patterns, and best practices, as well as its quirks and pitfalls. I can help students learn PHP from scratch or work through more advanced topics.
Prealgebra

Prealgebra

I hold a BS in Mathematics from Stanford with a 4.21 GPA and scored a perfect 2400 on the SAT and 36 on the ACT. My college math coursework plus my background in competitive math (AIME and USAMO qualifier) give me a deep understanding of the foundational math concepts that are covered in pre-algebra. I tutored math throughout high school and college, and I focus on helping students visually understand the underlying concepts rather than memorizing procedures or formulas.
Precalculus

Precalculus

I hold a BS in Mathematics from Stanford with a 4.21 GPA and scored a perfect 2400 on the SAT and 36 on the ACT. My college math coursework plus my background in competitive math (AIME and USAMO qualifier) give me a deep understanding of the trigonometric, algebraic, and functional concepts that are covered in precalculus. I tutored math throughout high school and college, and I focus on helping students visually understand the underlying concepts rather than memorizing procedures or formulas.
Probability

Probability

I hold a BS in Mathematics and an MS in Computer Science (specializing in AI) from Stanford with a 4.21 GPA, where I took Introduction to Probability for Computer Scientists (A+) and Structured Probabilistic Models (A+). Probability is also central to AI and machine learning, which was my area of focus for my MS and central to my research at Stanford's AI Lab. I also have a background in competition math in high school (AIME and USAMO qualifier) and college (top 500 in Putnam twice), so I understand the combinatorics and counting approaches that are most useful in a competition setting. I tutored math throughout high school and college, and I like to help students visually understand the material rather than memorizing formulas. Probability in particular benefits enormously from building real intuition rather than mechanically applying rules.
React

React

I spent 14 years as a Software Engineer at Meta, where I worked extensively with React and GraphQL in large-scale production environments. I was an early contributor to Relay, Meta's open-source data-fetching framework for React applications, and I spoke at JSConf, ReactEurope, and Nordic.js about my work. I also served as tech lead on Real-Time GraphQL, a framework supporting over one trillion updates daily across Meta's family of apps. I am well-equipped to help students learn React from the ground up or deepen their understanding of advanced patterns and real-world React usage.
Real Analysis

Real Analysis

I hold a BS in Mathematics from Stanford with a 4.21 GPA, where I took Honors Multivariable Mathematics (A+), Fundamental Concepts of Analysis (A+), Lebesgue Integration and Fourier Analysis (A+), Differential Geometry (A), Modern Algebra I and II, Set Theory (A+), and Elementary Theory of Numbers (A+). My mathematical competition background — including qualifying for the USAMO and placing in the top 500 on the Putnam Competition twice — gave me early exposure to rigorous proof-based thinking. I am comfortable teaching real analysis at the undergraduate level.
SAT Math

SAT Math

I scored a perfect 2400 on the SAT, including an 800 on the math section, and perfect 800s on both SAT II Math Level 1 and Math Level 2. I hold a BS in Mathematics from Stanford with a 4.21 GPA plus a background in competition math (USAMO qualifier, 4xAIME qualifier). I tutored math throughout high school and college. I take pride in helping students not just memorize tricks but genuinely understand the material so they can handle any problem the test throws at them.
Trigonometry

Trigonometry

I hold a BS in Mathematics from Stanford with a 4.21 GPA and scored a perfect 5 on AP Calculus BC, a perfect 2400 on the SAT, and a perfect composite 36 on the ACT. As a USAMO qualifier and four-time AIME qualifier, I have extensive experience with the trigonometric reasoning that appears throughout competition math and standardized tests. I tutored math throughout high school and college, and I like to help students visually understand the material rather than memorizing formulas. Building a visual intuition for the material is especially useful for trigonometry, and I hope to help your student do so!
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Contact Laney
Hourly Rate: $200
Contact Laney