Our Story
Since 2005, Mindfish has helped thousands of Colorado students reach their standardized testing and college goals. All of our programs are built around one-on-one tutoring and designed to address each student’s unique needs. We offer test prep services year-round to prepare for every administration of the SAT and ACT. We are also proud to be the official test prep provider for some of the best private schools in Colorado: Kent Denver School, St. Anne’s Episcopal School, and the Alexander Dawson School. As experts in standardized testing, we also offer test prep services focusing on GMAT, ISEE, SSAT, HSPT, GRE, LSAT, AP Exams, and Academic Tutoring.
Mindfish’s Mission
Our mission is to empower students to achieve their intellectual and academic potential and succeed in their educational lives. This process often encompasses practical goals (improved test scores, strong grades, college admissions, etc.) but the work we do with students aims to more broadly instill self-confidence, a strong work ethic, intellectual curiosity, and a balanced view of the importance of academic life. As renowned tutors, we are coaches and mentors and are thus in a position to model success to our students and positively impact their lives during crucial periods of development.
Our Founders and Directors
Bill Huston graduated with distinction from Stanford University in 2000, earning bachelor's degrees in English and Religious Studies. While studying at Oxford University in 1999 Bill became enthralled with England’s tutorial approach to education and has been working as a tutor and test prep professional ever since. In 2006, while studying music at the graduate level at CU Boulder, he teamed up with Stanford classmate Ryan Krug to found Mindfish Test Prep. Since then Mindfish has worked with thousands of students in Colorado and beyond. He continues to be regularly inspired by his students’ success stories and nothing gives him more fulfillment than watching his students blossom into self-aware learners who go on to flourish in college and beyond. Bill lives in Boulder with his wife and 2 year-old daughter and, when not Mindfish-ing, continues to pursue his passion for music, performing widely throughout Colorado.
Ryan experienced the benefits of test prep first hand, when he self studied for the PSAT way back in 1995. After learning over 3000 esoteric vocabulary words, Ryan nearly aced the PSAT and went on to become a National Merit Scholar. Ryan graduated from Stanford University in 2000 with a BS in Mechanical Engineering. He stuck around the “Farm” one more year, earned a Masters in Mechanical Engineering Design, but failed to win the elusive Ultimate Frisbee College National Championship. Before diving headlong into test prep, Ryan spent time working with the BMW Design team in Palo Alto, CA, the Yahoo Finance team in Sunnyvale, CA, and the Hercules Technology Capital Team in Boulder, CO. While earning his MBA at the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado Boulder, Ryan joined forces with fellow Stanford classmate Bill Huston to optimize the test prep process. Together, they created thousands of SAT questions and built one of industry’s first adaptive learning systems. While the software’s appeal faded, Ryan’s passion for helping students never faltered. Ryan lives in Golden with his wife and 4 year-old son. When not thinking about the world of test prep, Ryan continues to pursue perfect golf swings, epic powder turns, and indelible family memories.
Bill and Ryan have worked together in the test preparation field for over 15 years. They have authored a comprehensive set of SAT & ACT prep materials, taught countless test prep classes and private tutorials, and helped 1000’s of students in Colorado (and around the world) improve their SAT and ACT scores, boost their academic performance, and find success in college admissions and beyond. While Ryan and Bill keep very busy managing Mindfish, they are available to work with a select number of students each year at the rate of $350 per hour.