Helene attended Georgetown University, earning a B.S.F.S. International Politics, and has been a Los Angeles resident since 1977. After a career in insurance defense, she made the switch to college advising when her own children started high school, and completed the UCLA College Counseling Certificate program. She worked as a college advisor at Palisades Charter High School for eighteen years, the last seven as lead advisor, and participated in the college application process of over 12,000 high school seniors.