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Preschool-Kindergarten
Starting with the youngest of children, the search for the best school for your family can be overwhelming. We will help you enjoy it because together we will find the community that fully embraces your child and allows them to discover and continuously develop their love of learning.
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Middle School
As friendships become even more critical for your child’s development during the middle school
years, finding the best community for them is top priority. We look forward to helping you
discover the strongest balance of academics, extracurriculars and social life that best fits your
child’s strengths, values and interests.
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HIGH SCHOOL
Finding the right high school with your child can feel daunting as it is the stepping stone towards college and beyond. We will work with you to ensure that the high school experience is not only academically engaging but also builds lifelong relationships and connections to guide them towards their unique and successful path.
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College

Exploring college options can be both fun and rewarding. Let us provide support as you navigate the college admission process and help you determine the direction of your future both academically and as you prepare for your career.

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EDUCATION CONSULTING

Linda and Wendy are education consultants, each with over 30 years of admitting and placing thousands of students in preschool through college. We are passionate about helping each student, family and school thrive!

We focus on building the kind of genuine and long-lasting relationships with our clients that allow each child, family, and school to reach their own meaningful success. Our suite of service options provides a personalized process for each client.

We look forward to working with you!

At School First, we focus on building the kind of genuine and long-lasting relationships with our clients that allow each child, family, and school to reach their own meaningful success. Our suite of service options provides a personalized process for each client.

Our Co-Presidents, Linda and Wendy, each have over 30 years of experience admitting and placing thousands of students in preschool through college. We are passionate about helping each student, family and school thrive!

We look forward to working with you!

OUR SERVICES

Families

Through our deep relationships, we commit to connecting your child to the best school for them, preschool through college. We will focus on the schools so you can focus on your family!

Schools

We look forward to bringing our 30 years of experience, expertise, and connections to help your school meet its mission to its fullest. We specialize in admissions, financial aid, hiring and retention – all through the diversity, equity, and inclusion lens.

OUR TEAM

Linda K. Talton, M.Ed.

Founding President

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Wendy D. Wilkinson, M.Ed.

Co-President

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Allyson L. Weaver, M.Ed.

Consultant

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Testimonials

Erica T.

Linda was such a delight to work with. Her desire to get to know our children and her intuition really stood out. Linda was able to understand the unique priorities for each of our children and help us determine a realistic list of schools. We appreciated Linda’s knowledge and experience regarding the schools. Her support and responsiveness in every aspect of the process was invaluable to our family. Linda’s candor, kindness and strategic thinking was incredibly helpful from start to acceptance; We can’t recommend Linda enough!

Stephanie A.

When we realized we needed to move from DC to the Bay Area, we were so relieved when our head of school recommended we call Wendy. We had no idea how different the school cultures would be on the two coasts. Wendy was fluent in both! Our daughter ended up in just the right school for her and our family in Silicon Valley!

Monte M.

Wendy was a godsend.  Her reputable experience as an admissions officer helped us to decode the mystery of what each school is really looking for.  She helped us to match schools based on what we were looking for as a family and most importantly for our neurodivergent son. The journey was honest and not once did we feel like we were being guided to her best connections.  She was our advocate and after seven rejections in one year on our own, we secured two acceptances with her expert consultancy.  She is THE BEST!  Our son is finally in the right learning environment where he will thrive academically and socially.

Catherine B.

Wendy is a skillful, experienced educational consultant. With her deep knowledge of local schools Wendy was a huge help in our daughter’s transition from a boarding school back to a local day school after admission season was already over. Wendy’s contributions were extensive, from patiently interviewing our daughter to learn her needs and interests, researching the schools that had space available (and whether my child would be a good fit), and offering valuable and balanced feedback on the application essays. Throughout the process, Wendy communicated clearly and thoughtfully with both my daughter and with me, and I would recommend her without reservation. Our daughter had her top two choices as options in the end!

Yvonne Y.

When I walk my niece to National Cathedral School, I can’t believe our good fortune to have encountered Wendy during the application process. She was thoughtful, wise, and incredibly kind. Wendy was confident NCS would be a good fit, and she was right. Our motto is Trust Wendy.

Melissa B.

I couldn’t imagine anyone better to help guide me and my kids through the private school application maze than Wendy. Her experience and knowledge of that world is unparalleled, and she gave me great candid and helpful advice every step of the way. We ended up enrolling in our top choice schools! I can’t recommend Wendy more highly to anyone who is applying to schools in the DMV.

Ann-Janette T.

Working with Linda was an absolute pleasure. We were trying to find the right fit for our children and Linda was patient, kind, and an advocate for our family. She took time to get to know each of our kids and checked in regularly as we were going through the process. In what can often be a stressful experience, Linda made us feel like she really knew our family and I know she provided this same level of attention to the other families she worked with. Thank you Linda!

Elizabeth C.

We are so lucky to have had Linda to guide us through our admissions experience. Linda stood apart from her peers with her ability to help us and our son feel comfortable so that we could turn our attention to the important work of understanding him and his educational needs. Linda went above and beyond what was expected to make sure our son was seen and appreciated. We are so grateful for her role in helping us find the perfect independent school for our family.