As I introduce myself for our Zoom interview, Nicole McLaren-Campbell marks me as a former student. Despite guiding over 100 students over AIM Educational Services’ 13 years of operations, she promises she never forgets a name.
She’ll no doubt be put to the challenge as droves of students and parents flock to AIM both in-person and through their robust online offerings. It’s easy to see why. 92% of “AIMers” are admitted to one or more of their top three colleges. Their online catalog of lessons and services means that the Jamaican-based company can guide students across the Caribbean and increasingly within the US.
De-mystifying College Applications
What’s AIM’s secret? “No one size fits all,” McLaren-Campbell explains. Far more than an exam preparation class, AIM takes a holistic approach to getting students ready for tertiary education. There’s a proprietary diagnostic quiz online followed by one-on-one sessions with an expert to not only gauge a student’s suitability for studying abroad in a foreign country but to also narrow their choices and pick the best option for them.
Nicole McLaren-Campbell knows firsthand what it takes to attend a school in a foreign country. Not only is she a Princeton alumnus but she also worked as an admissions interviewer for her alma mater. When asked if she could have benefited from a service such as AIM when it came to her college application process, she did not hesitate. “Of course. Princeton was an experience,” she explains. “I made great [life-long] friends and it challenged and stretched me in many ways.” She’s also frank about the fit. “I hated winter,” she deadpans.
She didn’t realize it at the time but she suffered from regular bouts of seasonal depression that might have been mitigated if there was anything like AIM.
One particularly important aspect of AIM that McLaren-Campbell is proud of but also wants to push further is the Aim Higher Initiative. This is an option for low-income students who could not ordinarily afford her services. “The Value a student receives can go up to one million [JMD],” she explains. The initiative not only covers lessons but high school uniforms, lunch allowances, laptops, and internet connections where necessary.
The alumni meeting is another aspect where McLaren-Campbell looks to instill a final lesson into her students — networking. “AIM High Graduates have gone off into the world of work and look to mentor other AIM Higher students, the alumni network is looking to bring them all together.”
Building a community for goal-oriented women
The Goal Accelerator Club is McLaren-Campbell’s other venture. If you’re wondering how one person balances two companies, being a loving partner and an attentive mother of three, the GAC is McLaren-Campbell pulling back the curtain.
A self-proclaimed “productivity junkie”, the entrepreneur has created a multi-step program and community for helping women achieve their dreams. “Everyone has to learn how to block out the noise,” she starts, explaining the purpose of the GAC, “to figure out what they really want in life and set about achieving it.”
The two businesses operate symbiotically. Women in GAC often transition over to AIM either assisting McLaren-Campbell or enlisting their children. Meanwhile, AIM alumni will sometimes enlist in the GAC program, after all, McLaren-Campbell got them this far, why not go a bit further? “As a teen, you don’t have all the answers but you don’t have them as an adult either,” she explains, “but you have to know how to ask the questions.”
It would be easy for McLaren-Campbell to lean into a “cult of personality.” She is the center of these two entrepreneurs. Yet, she’s always clear that she’s always learning and benefiting from the community and surrounding herself with experts. That ethos permeates throughout GAC.
Testimonials from members rave not just about McLaren-Campbell’s productivity plans but about the community of supportive women she’s built. At dinners and meet-ups, women share their success stories — tales of tripling incomes, being able to delegate workloads, and free up time to spend with their loved ones.
Behind every teacher is the person who inspired them to teach. An individual who through compassion, understanding, and determination, brought out the best in you. To many students that person is McLaren-Campbell. For McLaren-Campbell, that person was Russell Bell. The legendary instructor and founder of the MRC Family School has touched countless many through his work. “Mr Russell Bell Opened my eyes to what it means to have an impact. I want to have impact,” she relays her mantra.
Through AIM and GAC, she continues Bell’s legacy as one of the country’s leading instructors.
