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Dr. Esther A. Riverson

Unlocking the Potential of Parenting for Flourishing Futures"

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Who Is Dr. Esther Riverson?

Esther Riverson Parenting Coach

Dr. Esther Ansaba Riverson (A.K.A. Dr. Talents), is an educator with over 56 years of experience. Esther earned her PhD in Human Nutrition/Microbiology from Purdue University in 1989. She earned an MS in Microbiology and Immunology at Purdue University (1986) and received Royalties from Purdue for the monoclonal antibodies she created during her MS research in 1986.

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In 1988, she was awarded the Charlotte Biester Scholarship for the International Federation of Home Economists Congress and the Gladys E. Vail Omicron Nu Scholarship for Outstanding Scholarship, Leadership, and Research. Prior to Purdue, Esther earned an MSc degree from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), and a BSc from the University of Ghana, and worked as the Ashanti Regional Resource Development Planner (1973-1978), and a teacher at Anglican Secondary School (1978-1981), in Kumasi, Ghana.

Esther loves children and has a deep desire to see all children succeed in their academic pursuits and reach their potential. She owned and ran a successful Kumon Math and Reading Center for twelve years, from 1992 to 2003, during which she had the wonderful opportunity to work with over 400 children and their families. Esther’s interest in Special Education was kindled as she worked with children from all walks of life who had different learning styles and academic capabilities. She adopted a philosophy that “Every child has a potential, and with proper care and nurturing, each child can reach their true potential,” and devoted time to developing goals for each student depending on their initial assessment and giving them individual attention to ensure that each student progressed steadily through the goals set for them.

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Esther enjoyed this work so much that in 2000, she decided to read for an M.Ed. in Special Education with a Concentration on Visual Impairments. She was definitely better equipped to serve children with blindness and other disabilities when she graduated in 2002 from the University of Louisville, KY. She has worked as a Teacher of the Blind and Visually Impaired for Arlington Public Schools; Prince William County Schools; and Allied Instructional Services in Alexandria City Public Schools and retired in September 2014.

Esther Riverson Parenting Coach Outreach
Esther Riverson Parenting Coach Outreach

Her treasured moments include founding and managing Intelligentsia Academy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; working with blind and visually impaired infants and their parents in the Parent Infant Education (PIE) Program in the City of Alexandria; and Chesapeake Center, managing and directing the activities of CITA Foundation, a non-profit, 501 (c) (3) organization based in Virginia. Esther founded CITA Foundation to help educate underprivileged children in Ghana, and Ethiopia, as a result of her experiences with children with disabilities and their virtual total exclusion from basic education opportunities and programs in Ghana and Ethiopia. Together with her husband, Esther is establishing in the Ashanti Region of Ghana, the Akyeremade Children’s Home and Learning Center, a model inclusive school where children with disabilities, and underprivileged children, will be educated alongside their non-disabled peers.

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Her vision is to establish the services of CITA Foundation in every country in Africa through collaborative partnership with various Diaspora Organizations. Esther is a Speaker, Coach, and an Author. She started her career in speaking with a focus on Parenting. As a result of her decision to become a stay-at-home Mom, Esther read many books on personal development, time management and leadership. She applied the gems of knowledge she picked up from her favorite authors to raise her 4 children, teaching each of them to read before they entered Kindergarten and has taught all her grandchildren to read except the youngest one who just turned 2 years.

Esther’s life, teaching, and coaching experience combined with her passion to help people makes it easy for her to identify children who are struggling in school, and she sees this as a call of duty. She has shared her strategies with several mothers and has taken to the stage with the goal of working in collaboration with teachers, caregivers, and parents empowering them with strategies and practical tools that they can use to create positive changes for better and harmonious lives for their families.



Her talks inspire her audience to take actionable steps to create mind shift and transformation as they seek to raise physically, socially, mentally, intellectually, and emotionally balanced children. Her first children’s book, “How The Chipmunk Got Its Stripes: An African Folktale” published in 2014 (now under revision), teaches integrity, and making right choices.

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Esther has helped thousands of parents to re-examine their methods of child rearing, and adopt principles that help motivate their children to intentionally choose to do the right thing. She has encouraged parents to move from a position of guilt and blaming themselves, into a position of power and strength, where they begin to give themselves a second chance. If you are looking for someone to transform your organization, association, or school, and help your members acquire and apply leadership skills, Esther is the answer for your next event.

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What Others Are Saying

Parenting Client Review
The first thing one will notice about Mrs Riverson are her eyes. They speak kindness and love. Quick to smile, she draws you in and make you quickly comfortable in her presence.  As
accomplished and educated as she is, Mrs Riverson is humble. For me her gentle advice and guidance was invaluable.  In the early years raising a strong willed child full of energy and curiosity, Mrs Riverson was an encouraging and assuring voice that I could do it.  She gave practical advice and was ever ready to listen. A consummate educator she helped my child build confidence in herself and the love to learn and achieve more.  It was just not the Kumon lessons for the children, it was knowing Mrs Riverson was invested in their success and their biggest cheer leader.  In the words of my daughter, the strategies she learned from Mrs Riverson helped her with her younger siblings and even to this day in her business when it comes to helping others learn.

Genny Dodoo

I have known Dr. Mrs. Esther Riverson and family since 2011. Mrs. Riverson is a godly woman who loves and honors God above all others and loves you for who you are. This is the bedrock of enviable parenting skills. Mrs. Riverson accepts and values everyone who comes her way, young and old, perceives in them potentials that they themselves may not have identified, and she is ready to invest in them to see these potentials come to fruition. She invests her time, resources, experience, and all. I am a living example of this investment. She saw in me more than a teacher’s assistant. She was persistent in encouraging me to pursue further studies to become
whatever I desire in the field of Education. I took her motherly advice seriously, I look back over ten years and I am forever thankful to God for the timely encounter with her. I am certain there are many who have my kind of story and even more about Mrs. Riverson’s impact on their lives.

Elizabeth F Obeng 
Enhanced Autism Teacher

Parenting Client Review
Parenting Client Review
I have known Dr. Esther Riverson for over 30 years. We are members of Word of Life Assembly of God International Church (WOL) in Springfield, VA. Our children attended the Missionettes girls group together at WOL when they were young. For the time that I have known Esther, I would attest to the fact that she did not only send
her children to the Missionettes group but also took part in the teaching and training of these precious young Angels. This was where she impacted so many individuals by qualitatively investing her time, wisdom, and love in their lives. Her pleasant demeanor created a tranquil environment for the children to perform effectively. Her form of child training was authoritative/trustworthy. She was consistently straightforward and truthful no matter what the consequences would be. She told the story as it is although sometimes it was too bitter to swallow. She exhibited an outstanding Christian character not only to her biological children but to all who would encounter her. Her countenance and humble spirit made it easier to confide in her with most sensitive parenting topics. She made herself an available instrument with accommodating qualities fit for a mother, a grandmother, a best friend, and a confidant. Her gentle approach in processing information was a display of politeness, courteousness, and obedience. Personally, these qualities facilitated so much respect in my eyes and heart towards her. There’s a lot to learn from her regarding parenting.  God Bless

Rev Dr. Regina Okine-Korsinah, DCC, D.Th, Ph.D

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