Get to know us! 

Academic journeys, much like nature, have seasons when growth feels difficult and challenging. Many families come to us when they feel overwhelmed by a complex learning profile, testing requirements, or challenges related to engagement and personalized learning. We are here to walk that path with you.

Our Mission and Foundation 

Our Mission: At Mighty Oaks Consulting, we believe that every student's academic path deserves a specialized strategy. We are not a scripted tutoring company; we are professional educators and solution architects who partner with you to achieve success, regardless of your current school or educational environment.

Our Foundation: Mighty Oaks Consulting is a family-led educational firm rooted in over 30 years of combined, diverse professional experience. We were established to provide highly personalized academic support that transcends school type—from public, private, virtual, and hybrid programs to home learning. We empower, validate, and support all families with research-driven, tailored solutions.

The Mighty Oaks Promise: We plant the seeds of strategy and confidence. You grow the trees of success and achievement.

Meet Your Architects 

Niki Cooper, MAEd 

Niki is your Solution and Learning Architect here at Mighty Oaks. With over 18 years of diverse, hands-on educational experience, she is here to serve and support your family's academic journey. 

Niki's commitment to excellence is evidenced by her extensive background: 

• Specialist Expertise: She holds graduate degrees specializing in Academically and Intellectually Gifted (AIG) learners and is a specialist in solving complex learning puzzles for neurodiverse students.  

• Award-Winning Start: She began her career as a Math Intervention teacher in Wake County, where she earned the prestigious Diane Kent-Parker First-Year Teacher Award. She went on to receive the Teacher of the Year award at both Wake County schools where she worked.

• Diverse Leadership: Niki leveraged this expertise as the Student Services Director at a local Montessori school, where she developed inclusive programs that met the academic, social, emotional, and behavioral needs of all students.  

• Global Perspective: She even collaborated abroad, teaching and working with the Board of Education in Kobe, Japan, to improve elementary English education, giving her a unique, global perspective on diverse instructional needs.

Niki is deeply committed to organic learning experiences and empowering families through collaboration and research-driven approaches. She translates objective data (like Woodcock-Johnson results) into clear, practical roadmaps, offering her expertise to empower you to confidently guide your child's education, no matter the learning environment.

Credentials

• Award-winning teacher and trainer 

• Post-graduate Ph.D. coursework in Learning and Development

• MA.Ed. in Education, focused on Neurodiverse and Academically and Intellectually Gifted Learners (Summa Cum Laude and Graduation Speaker)

• B.S. in Elementary Education, focused on upper elementary, psychology, and diverse learning needs (Magna Cum Laude)

• Teaching Certifications: Academically & Intellectually Gifted (AIG K-12), Reading (K-12), Instructional Intervention Specialist, Elementary - all subjects (K-6), Middle Grades English Language Arts (ELA 6-9), Math Intervention

• Currently serving as the Special Needs Support Coordinator to the Homeschool Helps Director of North Carolinians for Home Education (NCHE)

Thomas Cooper III, EdD

Thomas brings a wealth of expertise in educational leadership, instructional innovation, and international education to our team. Holding an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership, he is passionately dedicated to ensuring every child has the tools to thrive, and he is here to serve and support your family's academic journey. 

Thomas's commitment to personalized education is evidenced by his extensive background: 

• Specialized Expertise: He holds a deep understanding of instructional innovation, virtual learning, and accessibility, and is a published author and advocate for educational equity. 

• Diverse Leadership: He has experience teaching and leading in traditional, international, and non-traditional school settings, including virtual and homeschool environments, drawing from an expertise base that includes the Superintendent license. 

• Follow-the-Child Focus: He focuses on meeting families where they are, leveraging both technology and hands-on manipulatives to remove academic barriers, offering his deep knowledge to help your student discover and utilize their unique strengths. 

As an avid believer in follow-the-child, outdoor play, and learning by doing, Thomas views consulting as a true partnership. His commitment is to humbly share the strategies and insights that lead to lasting student success for all learners, regardless of their educational environment.

Credentials

• Local, State, National, and International Conference Speaker

• Ed.D. in Educational Leadership

• MA.Ed. and B.S. in Middle Grades Education

• Teaching and Leadership Certifications: Superintendent license, Educational Specialist license, Administrative license, Middle Grades in Social Studies and English Language Arts (6-9)

Our Guiding Principle 

We believe deeply in the unique call and capability of every parent. You are the ultimate expert on your child and their best teacher, and our entire approach is rooted in equipping you for that essential task. We strive to ensure that the work we do builds lasting foundations, rooted in strength and diligence, so your student can flourish. 

“They are like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers.” — Psalm 1:3 (NIV)