Johnny Duda, Ed.D
Educator, writer, and founder of Vault Prep.
Twenty years of helping students learn how to learn.
Turn big ideas into outcomes.
01
Writing
Essays on education, cognition, and what AI is doing to how students think.
For editors, journalists, and educators
02
Speaking
Keynotes, panels, and conferences on critical literacy and learning in the age of AI.
For event organizers and podcast hosts
03
Professional Development
Faculty training programs that bring functional learning practices into the classroom.
For school leaders
04
Test Prep
(ACT & SAT)
1:1 preparation + partnerships with select schools that include scholarship opportunities.
For families and school leaders
About
Johnny Duda holds an A.B. from Harvard and a doctorate in education from UCLA, where his research focused on literacy development and teacher training. He is the founder of Vault Prep, a premium test preparation and literacy coaching practice, and the author of Functional Learning™, a technical monograph on the framework that anchors his work.
The framework grew out of a practical question that kept surfacing in the tutoring room: why do smart, well-prepared students so often know exactly what to do and still not do it on test day? The answer, he came to believe, is not motivation or content gaps but the way information is processed under pressure. Functional Learning names that process clearly enough that it can be taught—and taught early enough that students learn how to learn before they are asked to perform.
His practice now spans three modes: one-on-one tutoring on a sliding-scale model that subsidizes free and discounted access for families who cannot afford private rates; institutional test prep partnerships with select schools; and professional development for teachers bringing functional learning practices into their classrooms.