Educator selected as 2014 Elite 40 Under 40 winner

Susan Kruger, the president and CEO of a company that teaches students how to succeed in school, was selected by a public online vote as the winner of the Oakland County Executive's Class of 2014 Elite 40 Under 40 winner. The announcement was made Wednesday night by County Executive L. Brooks Patterson during his State of the County address at the Centerpoint Marriott in Pontiac. As the winner, Kruger was given the honor of introducing Patterson to the crowd of about 500 people. "I only met him for the first time two weeks ago but I have admired his leadership for years," Kruger said Kruger, 38, is president and CEO of SOAR Learning Inc. For the past 13 years, she has taught hundreds of students how to succeed in school. She began tutoring individual students in study skills. As demand for her expertise grew, she created SOAR® Study Skills Workshops to reach more students. Her book, "SOAR Study Skills: A Simple and Efficient System for Getting Better Grades in Less Time," is the worldwide best-selling study skills book for more than five years and her curriculum is in more than 2,000 schools nationwide and more than 14 countries. SOAR Learning now employs five full-time staff, several part-time interns, among others. Kruger has also created an internship program to recruit Oakland University and Oakland Community College students where her program provides training in soft skills and direction in these skills to select future careers. "She is a dynamic and vibrant young woman who is helping prepare our young people to be successful as they move through life," Patterson said. "Not bad for a person who by her own admission struggled in school until she used her own techniques to get straight As." Kruger was among three finalists in the online voting. More than 4,000 votes were cast online in five days for the three finalists. More than 500 applications and nominations were reviewed by a panel of judges, looking for the top 40 young professionals and thought leaders who live or work in Oakland County. Published: Fri, Feb 14, 2014