Lily Decatorsmith

After being adopted from China at nine months, Lily grew up in Barrington, Illinois and now lives in Chicago. She attended two colleges before settling on Illinois Institute of Technology, where she studied Humanities as part of the Honors Law Program. Her passion for law came from being raised by two lawyers, both of whom fostered in her a thirst for knowledge and penchant for arguing.

In high school, between taking AP classes and working part time, Lily volunteered for her middle school’s art club where she discovered her passion for mentoring. Post high school during one of her gap years, Lily was scouted by the owner of a tutoring center and began her career as a tutor. Even after COVID-19 closed everything down, she continued tutoring privately, and eventually went on to manage a different tutoring center. What she enjoys most about working with students is getting to know each of them individually and helping them achieve their goals. Nothing brings her more joy than watching a student grasp a hard concept or hearing about their successes.

Lily prides herself on her adaptability and willingness to learn from both her students and her own mentors. She aims to provide students with executive functioning skills and a conceptual understanding of the material, no matter what the topic. Managing her own struggles with organization skills has allowed her to connect with students on a more personal level and teach from a place of understanding. Throughout the years, no matter where life has taken her, she has always come back to education and her passion for helping others.