Meet Lorrie Director
Independent College & Educational Consultant
The Differentiator
Most families experience the college process from the outside — tracking deadlines, reading rankings, and hoping they're making the right calls. Lorrie Director has seen it from the inside.
As a New York State–certified school counselor and former district-level Director of School Counseling, Lorrie spent more than 15 years designing the programs, counseling structures, and college readiness systems that shape how students are evaluated. She understands how schools build transcripts, how counselors write recommendations, and how institutional priorities influence the advice students receive.
At DirectEd Advantage, she brings that systems-level expertise directly to the families she works with — so you’re not guessing at what colleges see. You’re working with someone who helped build the system.
Who This Is For
DirectEd Advantage is designed for families with students in high school who are ready to approach college planning with intention — not just in senior year, but starting earlier, when it matters most.
Lorrie works best with families who want more than a checklist. If you’re looking for a strategic partner who will help your student build a strong academic foundation, identify the right fit, and navigate the process with clarity, you’re in the right place.
How Lorrie Works:
A Multi-Year, Student-Centered Approach
College planning isn’t a senior-year sprint. Lorrie works with families to develop long-term academic and postsecondary plans that are aligned with each student’s goals, strengths, and circumstances — from course selection and skill-building to application strategy and beyond.
Grounded in How Schools Actually Work
Lorrie’s background gives her an insider’s understanding of how secondary schools evaluate students — the role of course rigor, GPA context, teacher recommendations, and counselor letters. She maintains active professional relationships with district counseling leaders, keeping her guidance current with evolving school-based practices and post-pandemic academic realities.
Ethical, Student-First Guidance
Lorrie’s practice is guided by the ethical standards of ASCA and IECA. Every recommendation is made with the student’s well-being and long-term goals at the center — not a singular focus on selective admissions.
About Lorrie
Lorrie Director, M.S. Ed., is a New York State–certified school counselor and independent educational consultant with more than 15 years of experience in college readiness, academic planning, and postsecondary advising.
Her career spans the counseling office and district leadership — including designing and overseeing comprehensive college counseling programs in competitive school districts, developing initiatives focused on graduation pathways and academic equity, and creating targeted supports for at-risk students. That dual background gives her a perspective most independent consultants simply don’t have.
Lorrie is an active member of NACAC, NYSACAC, ASCA, and NYSSCA, and participates in conferences at the local, state, and national levels to stay current on evolving admissions trends. Her work has been recognized in national publications, and she has presented at conferences across the country.
Clarity. Common Sense. Compassion.
Not sure where to start? A free 30-minute consultation is a no-pressure way to ask questions, share where your student is in the process, and find out whether DirectEd Advantage is the right fit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Have questions? Take a look at the FAQ or reach out anytime.
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An independent college consultant works exclusively with your family — no caseloads, no competing priorities, just focused, individualized support for your student. School counselors do extraordinary work, but they typically carry caseloads of 300–400 students and have limited time to devote to any one family’s college planning journey.
What makes DirectEd Advantage different is Lorrie’s rare dual licensure as a New York State Certified School Counselor and Certified School District Leader. She didn’t just work within the school system — she designed, implemented, and managed comprehensive college readiness programs within it. That insider expertise is what she brings directly to your family.
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Not at all — and this is one of the most common misconceptions about this work. The goal of DirectEdAdvantage is to help every student find the college that is the right fit for them: academically, socially, financially, and personally. That might be a highly selective university, a strong regional school, a program with an exceptional scholarship, or a college with exactly the right major and campus culture.
Families who work best with DirectEd Advantage are those who value a compassionate, student-centered approach over high-pressure, rankings-obsessed tactics. The best outcome is a student who arrives at college ready to thrive — not just one who got in.
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Lorrie welcomes open communication with parents and understands that you are a vital part of this journey.
At the same time, sessions are deliberately student-centered. A core goal of the process is building your student’s own voice, self-advocacy, and ownership of their future. Students who arrive at college having owned their application process are better equipped to navigate what comes next.
Parents of students working with Lorrie can reach out with questions or schedule a meeting at any time.
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No — and any consultant who makes that promise should be approached with serious skepticism. College admissions, particularly at selective institutions, involves factors that no consultant can control: institutional priorities, class composition goals, yield management, and more.
What Lorrie can promise is that your student will enter the process with the strongest possible application, a well-matched college list, and the confidence and skills to present themselves authentically. Families who work with DirectEd Advantage consistently report reduced stress, greater clarity, and students who feel genuinely prepared — not just for admission, but for what comes after.
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The free 30-minute consultation is specifically designed to answer this question. Lorrie will assess your student’s grade, goals, timeline, and where they are in the process, and recommend the package that’s the right fit — with no pressure and no obligation.
If your needs are narrower (a single essay review, help navigating FAFSA, or a one-time strategy session), à la carte sessions offer flexibility without a full package commitment.
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It begins with a free 30-minute consultation to understand your student’s goals, grade, strengths, and timeline. Lorrie will recommend the package that best fits your family’s needs and answer any questions you have before committing.
From there, the work is structured and systematic. Depending on the package, this includes: academic and course planning, interest and career exploration, college list development, essay brainstorming and feedback, financial aid and scholarship guidance, application strategy and timeline, and ongoing support through decision day.
Every step is documented, personalized, and paced to your student’s specific needs.
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No — and this is a firm ethical commitment. As an IECA Associate Member, Lorrie abides by the IECA Principles of Good Practice, which expressly prohibit writing or heavily editing a student’s essay. Beyond ethics, ghostwritten essays simply don’t work: admissions officers are skilled at identifying writing that doesn’t match a student’s voice, and a fabricated essay undermines the authenticity that makes applications compelling.
What Lorrie does do is guide the entire essay process: helping students identify their most meaningful stories, structuring their ideas, providing the kind of thoughtful feedback an English teacher might offer, and ensuring the final essay is the student’s best, most authentic work.The college consulting industry is unregulated — anyone can call themselves a consultant. The IECA Principles of Good Practice are one of the few external standards that exist. Lorrie’s commitment to them is a guarantee of ethical conduct, not just a credential.
Our Founder
I’m Lorrie Director, the founder of DirectEd Advantage. I have spent more than a decade working as a School Counselor, and district-level Director of School Counseling. Throughout my career, I have guided thousands of students and families through important educational decisions. My experience spans the counseling office, the leadership suite, and the district perspective where systems, programs, and supports are built.