Biography

A Silicon Valley native, I grew up in Palo Alto where I attended J.L. Stanford middle school and Palo Alto High School. My household was a bilingual one in which I spoke both English and Spanish. I discovered my passion for learning languages early on when I began making friends with international students who didn’t speak English. I would learn their native languages such as Italian or Mandarin to be able to converse with them.

My passion for learning languages and immersing myself into different cultures led me to earn a degree in Anthropology from Reed College. In my junior year, I studied abroad in Yucatán, México at the Open School of Anthropology and Ethnography. I conducted anthropological research in Spanish and assimilated into the small village I lived in. This experience inspired my senior thesis topic which was mental health in the Yucatan peninsula. While I was in Mexico, I taught local students Math in their native Spanish language.

I found my love for teaching early on and have many years of experience tutoring K-12 students in Math, English, Biology, and Spanish. Before coming to AJ, I taught fourth graders math at the Boys and Girls club as a teacher’s assistant. Some of the students were not fluent in English and I helped explain the material in Spanish. I also ran an after-school tutoring program in Portland, OR with the non-profit organization Girls Inc. where I tutored students in Math and English.

I’ve found that my favorite subject to teach is Spanish because of the skills it teaches students that go beyond just learning the language. My teaching philosophy caters to every student’s unique learning style and engages them based on their own personal interests. I am passionate about making the material relevant to the student regardless of their grade level and developing trust between me and my student.

Aside from tutoring, I act in plays and short films, dance, read and develop my creativity through taking classes and making art.