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Our Faculty: A Qualified Team of Passionate Professionals
Brian J. Smith, BS – ESL Specialist
A native New Englander and proud NU alum, Brian began his teaching career in Japan where he taught English for five and a half years at companies like Toshiba, Mitsubishi, Honda, and Nippon Steel. There he also created an English language service for small companies. He began teaching at Approach in 1998 as an ESL instructor, and in 2001 he became one of the core instructors of the Teacher Training Program. He has taught a writing class at Mass Bay Community College since 2000, and organized a soccer program for international students in Boston.
Languages:
English, “broken” Portuguese, Katakana and Hiragana literate
Interests and hobbies:
The great crooners, Standards, Oldies, Film Noir & classic movies, local college sports, woodcraft painting, his cows, and the eternal search for the perfect cup of tea.
Email:
bsmith@approachusa.com
Christopher Bishop – ESL Specialist
Chris has 7 years of experience teaching English as a second language. He has taught at several Boston-based schools, and recently spent a year in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, teaching English and learning Portuguese. Chris encourages an informal classroom atmosphere, using music, videos, and games to help connect classroom subjects to his students’ lives outside of school.
Languages:
English, Portuguese
Interests and hobbies:
Comedy, computers, science fiction, board, card, and video games, and just about any kind of music.
Email:
cbishop@approachusa.com
Huayra Hnakto – ESL Specialist
Huayra has recently obtained her Bachelor’s degree in French Language and English Literature from Suffolk University in Boston. She was born and raised in Japan, studied in Turkey and France and enjoys traveling. She is new to teaching but is eager and excited to explore the field alongside all the great teachers at Approach.
Languages:
Japanese, Turkish, French and Spanish
Interests and hobbies:
Travel, literature, music and enjoying everyday.
Email:
hhnatko@approachusa.com
Luciana Barbiero – ESL Specialist
Luciana has been a tutor at Approach since the summer of 2011. She is certified in TESOL, began teaching in 2009 and has extensive teaching experience with both children and adults. She is always available to help students with homework or extra help and is very knowledgeable. Luciana is very friendly and will motivate students through the challenges and obstacles of learning a new language..
Languages:
Portuguese, Spanish
Interests and hobbies:
Art in general, from music, dance to theatre and enjoying everyday.
Email:
lbarbiero@approachusa.com
Luciana Sarra – ESL Specialist
If you ever doubt your ability to master another language, then let Luciana be your inspiration. Luciana began her ESL teaching career as an EFL instructor in São Paulo, Brazil. In 2001 she came to Boston where she began her studies towards her ESL teaching certification and completed research identifying the correlation between culture shock and language learning. Having mastered the language, interest in teaching led her to hone her expertise through courses taken at the Harvard Extension School, in Cambridge, and Massachusetts Bay Community College, in Wellesley. Luciana likes working with beginner students and encourages them to make the most of their stay in Boston. Her students enjoy her methodical and organized teaching style, in addition to her friendliness and accessibility. Luciana has been an ESL instructor at Approach since 2001.
Languages:
English, Portuguese, and Spanish
Interests and hobbies:
Spain, Flamenco dancing, Feng shui, and playing with her pet ferret.
Email:
lsarra@approachusa.com
Michael Hnatko – ESL Specialist
Actively sought out by students for all kinds of academic questions, Michael has an enviable educational background, having completed his BA in Comparative Literature at Brown University and his MA in TESOL at Columbia University. Michael has lived in various countries such as Japan, Korea, Turkey, Syria, Egypt, France and Italy throughout his career. He joined Approach’s faculty in 2006 and became the TOEFL Program teacher in 2009.
Languages:
English, Japanese, Spanish, Turkish, and Arabic
Interests and hobbies:
Film and literary criticism, long distance
running, and his dog.
Email:
mihnatko@approachusa.com
Marsha Huggan – ESL Specialist
Marsha was born right here in Boston to parents who immigrated here from Haiti and Jamaica, so she has witnessed first-hand the struggles and the joys of starting a new life here. She started her career in 2004, teaching at a bilingual K-12 school in Honduras, Central America. Subsequently she taught middle school for 3 years, but decided to pursue her MA TESOL in 2008. However, she has been working with Adult ESL students since 2001. She has taught classes at Atlantic Union College, Baltimore City Community College, and other ESL programs. She began teaching at Approach in 2011.
Languages:
English, Spanish
Interests and hobbies:
Singing, Health, Bikram Yoga, and the Bible.
Email:
misshuggan@approachusa.com
Matthew Purdy – ESL Specialist
Matthew Purdy joined Approach in the summer of 2011 with a background in literature and creative writing. He received his PhD in English from Texas Tech University, and he has taught at a number of colleges and universities over the course of his academic career. Since moving to Boston in 2010, he has taught at Bunker Hill Community College and the Rhode Island School of Design. Additionally, he has published short fiction in numerous literary journals; if you Google his name you can probably find some online. He loves teaching, and his students can clearly see his passion for language and learning. Although he is originally from New Jersey, he is pleased to say that he does not have an accent.
Languages:
English, Latin
Interests and hobbies:
Playing the guitar (pretty well), playing the piano (not so well), foreign and independent films, second-hand bookstores.
Email:
mpurdy@approachusa.com
Randia Kremer – ESL Specialist
Randia is Egyptian - American, who has been teaching ESL students for 7 years. She obtained her BS from University of New Orleans ,in Business. She acquired her MA in Education from Cambridge University in UK. She was a school coordinator in Egypt from 2007 - 2010. She has recently moved to Boston where she would like to pursue a PHD degree in Education. She is adored by all students and is very helpful and active.
Languages:
English, Arabic
Interests and hobbies:
Comedy, computers, reading , and just about any kind of music.
Email:
rkremer@approachusa.com
Robert Sheppard – ESL Specialist
Rob was born and raised nearby, in Hull. He studied English and Italian Studies at Stonehill College in Easton, MA. In 2004, he spent a semester studying Italian art and language in Florence. Months after graduation, he was half a world away, teaching EFL in Seoul, South Korea. In 2010, he received his TESOL certification and traveled to Taipei, Taiwan, where he taught both children and corporate students. At Approach, Rob teaches electives to AAP and Work Study students.
Languages:
English
Interests and hobbies:
Books (no Kindles), movies, art, weiqi
Email:
rsheppard@approachusa.com
Stephanie Morejon – ESL Specialist
Stefanie is a Cuban American from Miami, Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Literature and Linguistics from Boston College. She completed her TEFL training in Prague, Czech Republic and has spent time studying language and culture in Lugano and Montreux Switzerland. She has an inexhaustible urge to travel and has been to 15 countries so far. In the next year, she will begin studying towards her PhD in Linguistics with a focus on sociolinguistics and language acquisition.Stefanie believes there is no better way to understand foreign cultures than to understand the ways in which people choose to express themselves. She teaches language as a means of not only sharing her experience with students, but of learning as much as she can about another's experience.
Languages:
Spanish, English, French, Italian. Current studying Egyptian Arabic
Interests and hobbies:
Literature, film, music, mythology, art, and African drumming.
Email:
smorejon@approachusa.com