Meet the Tekkie Team

After studying Chemical Engineering and working in the Steelmaking industry for several years, Sonia discovered that she also has a passion for imparting knowledge which led to her completing a PGCE. Currently an MST educator for senior and FET phases in the classroom and online. She describes herself as “Multipotentialite” who is family orientated and enjoys the outdoors. “My personality allows me to adapt easily to new environments and change and I’m always driven by Einstein’s words that ‘imagination is more important than knowledge’ and feels the TekkieUni family allows her to imagine and gain knowledge.

Robyn lives in Cape Town, South Africa and is an entrepreneur who believes in life-long learning. She is a trained massage therapist and web developer, has qualifications in Project Management, Call Centre Management and Reflexology and also runs her own business distributing natural skincare to health shops. In her spare time, Robyn loves to read and travel with her husband and cocker spaniel, Buckley.

Laila is a qualified journalist and teacher who spends her free time being nerdy and researching new things. That is how she stumbled across the coding course and has loved it ever since. In her free time, she enjoys soccer and is a blogger.

Vicki is a lifelong learner with years of teaching experience in various settings. She completed a Bachelor of Arts, an Honors in English, and a Master of Arts in English at Rhodes University. Vicki has also attained a Postgraduate Diploma in Tertiary Education from the University of South Africa and a Teaching English as a Foreign Language certificate from the Bay Language Institute. She has taught and lectured at various schools and colleges in South Korea, Oman, and South Africa. She believes that teaching is a reciprocal process: as you teach, you learn. She looks forward to learning with you!

Serena Pillay is a politics and economics graduate, educator, and entrepreneur. She loves learning new things and one of her greatest passions is helping others realize their full potential. One of her favorite quotes is “teachers teach more by what they are more than by what they say." For this reason, she is always venturing into new fields and learning new technologies. She loves the Tekkie Uni approach, as it cultivates an entrepreneurial mindset that is a necessary skill for the future leaders and innovators of tomorrow.

Rheedan has a passion for culture, education, media, science, and technology and a deep interest in exploring their intersection points. He has a degree in classical culture, English Literature, and Philosophy, and has spent five years traveling and teaching in various parts of the world. He is currently back in South Africa pursuing another degree in Math and Physics with the goal of becoming a science educator. When he is not working or studying you will probably find him reading, listening to music, taking photos, and making videos.

Lauren comes from a beautiful coastal town in South Africa. She is a proud mother of two and has a Diploma and career background in Business Management. She is passionate about education and feels that everyone should be presented with opportunities to discover and explore all their abilities. Her vast experience with multi-culture dynamics makes her an enthusiastic and empathetic teacher. She strongly believes in encouragement and empowerment, through sharing knowledge and skills, by way of fun and interactive learning platforms, that will equip and opportune one and all with tools to anchor their futures with confidence.

Zohar has been interested in the world of computers and music from a young age. He started studying computer science at the age of 16, then got recruited to the army at the age of 18 to be a computer subjects instructor and guide, teaching subjects such as HTML, Photoshop, Office. Later on, he worked for many years as an instructor for Computer Information Systems in big companies and corporations, then started then his own company for guiding and instructor services that was active mainly in the south of Israel. Following his passion for music and as well as computer programs, Zohar later studied Sound Engineering, and now he is working with productions in sound editing. He owns a home studio for recording and mixing sound, also teaching Sound related subjects in an Academic College. He loves teaching and music - playing, producing and creating video & art.

Simon Cholat enjoys various different areas, such as music, theater, video games, writing… He created two YouTube channels, one dedicated to music and the other to video games. These experiences gave him the opportunity to meet a lot of different video makers, with whom he learned a lot about video editing. He also loves teaching theater and music and is working on various creations.

Fernando is from Buenos Aires, Argentina. He has been working with kids for 10 years as a school teacher and he also is also a music therapist. He is really interested in new ways of teaching and believes technology has to be part of this. In his free time, he enjoys listening to new music, playing football and cooking Asado. Travelling is his true passion and doing trekking, scuba diving and eating local food is what he does most during these trips.

Lucía has an MA in Language and Literature, she is passionate about books (obviously) and loves studying. She is also a big fan of editing and Photoshop amateur and loves the different creations that are possible with these programs. If you ask her, life should be all about traveling and learning new skills.

Coding has been one of my interests since some friends of mine, who are developers, started talking to me about this language used in informatics to "do magic". As I was curious, I started reading some guides and learned ideas about coding: the things I learned were useful for my previous work, where I used to teach how to use online survey software in 1-hour webinars, and of course, are now useful for TekkieUni courses. However, this was not the first time I have taught: right before, I was English teacher for Paul Valéry University in Montpellier and I have taught Italian, French and Spanish to kids from 8 to 12 for Summer Schools in Italy.

Ivana is an educator with experience in technology, informal education, outdoor life and gender studies. She has experience working with kids from kindergarten to university. She is an avid traveler and loves being on top of mountains, rock-climbing and exploring the depths of the oceans while scuba diving. Her passion is teaching, exploring the world and learning about new technologies that can make lives better.

Erwan currently lives in France, on the picturesque Pink Granite Coast. His background is scientific; he has a degree in Engineering, a Masters in Geoscience & Environment, and a PhD in Planetary Science. He lived in Spain for several years, while he was a research fellow at the European Space Agency. His interests include traveling, photography and cycling in the mountains. He’s also fascinated by volcanoes.
Erwan is currently dividing his time between translating and educational activities. He sees TekkieUni as an innovative way to reach out to various kinds of audiences and believes that a pinch of fun can only improve the experience.

Emilie is a foodie, maybe because she lives in the capital of gastronomy.
She loves traveling and discovering new cultures. She is open minded and her friends live all around the world. She has worked in France and abroad in a variety of different industries. One of her greatest qualities is her ability to get along really quickly in a new environment.
As a tutor, she is able to adapt herself to the children to help them learn in a relaxed atmosphere.

Julieth is a dedicated teacher with a B.A. in Education, with an emphasis in English, from Ibague, Colombia. She has a record of successful experience teaching children, teenagers, young adults and adults.
Julieth has a passion for education, languages, graphic design and travelling. She can be described as a creative, proactive, and enthusiastic person. She has experience working as a counselor at American summer camps, a youth counselor on cruise ships in different parts of the world, and an English teacher in schools and language institutes in Colombia and Uruguay.

Mara is an English teacher and translator with more than 5 years’ experience teaching kids. She enjoys traveling and learning more about the culture of the countries she visits.
Programming entered her life in college when she started teaching herself coding. From that moment on, she could not stop learning and discovering more about the world of computers.
She is passionate about teaching because she strongly believes that when one person teaches, two people learn.

Phumelela is an experienced TEFL-certified teacher from Cape Town, South Africa. She graduated with a Bachelor Degree in Public Policy and Administration and Sociology and has been an online English teacher for five years. Her friendliness and patience provide a fun and pressure free learning environment. She believes that an important part of creativity is not being afraid to fail.

After two years in programing school, he developed several games and programs for him and his friends.
Adrien is from France, when he is not on his computer developing something, he's climbing somewhere in nature.

After studying law in France and teaching language in Scandinavia, Mathilda has several years of experience in foreign language education for children and adults, both in the classroom and online.
Speaking several languages including French (native language), Norwegian, Swedish and English, Mathilda is also a redactor for a website about the culture and discovery of the Scandinavian countries.
She loves traveling and going on an adventure in nature. She likes to mix creativity and new technology. Her passion is finding new fun methods to pass on knowledge.
Her patience, enthusiasm and listening create a caring relationship with the children she teaches.
She really believes in what Børge Ousland, the Norwegian explorer said, "Pursue your dreams, never stop".

Natalie, a mother of four, is a trained pastry chef and has a B.S. in nutrition. Programming has given her the opportunity to bring together her creative skills and her interest in science and technology.
What she loves most about teaching is stimulating the curiosity and fostering the creativity of her students. Her experience has shown her that “screen time” can be an enjoyable and satisfying component of the learning process. Most importantly, Natalie believes that learning should be fun and accessible to all.

"I could not believe that programming could be learned in such an enjoyable, fun, light and thorough way." Ofek claims that this is possible because of the diverse and innovative framework that the program provides. She believes in Peter Drucker's statement that "the best way to predict the future is to create it."

Itai began tutoring as early as high school. At the age of 17, as he was leading groups, he completed a leadership course for Krav Maga at the Wingate Institute and then began training students of all ages, which is something he does till today.
Itai has since completed several training courses; he has also studied and taught in many fields including application development, aerobic kickboxing, acrobatics, dungeons and dragons, and more.
Itai believes that there is no limit to the knowledge one can gain. His greatest joy is in passing on this knowledge and these values to the next generation.

Emily is a student studying Communications and Education at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Emily believes that the future is in creativity and in people’s ability to invent, to innovate and solve problems. In her opinion all these abilities can be expressed in the most experiential way at Tekkie Uni.

Carles has been working for more than ten years as a humanities teacher in Spain. He loves art, and for that reason he considers coding an excellent way to promote creative, imaginative and interactive learning, just as music and literature do.
Outside of teaching, he dedicates his time to reading, writing, cooking or to doing sports, among other activities that he finds inspiring and stimulating. All of these he does with the fullest dedication, the same as when he is working.

With a typical background, Francesca likes discovering, imagining and learning different things just as much as she likes teaching. Her interest for different languages such as Japanese and German have led her to love travelling with an open mind. She has a passion for creativity and for the artistic world (she’s a non-professional writer among other things). She hopes she can inspire others on their own path by helping them to shape their characters. She thinks that it’s important to not give up on our dreams, but it’s important to work so they can become true.

Tamia is a certified teacher from the United Stated of America. She has nearly a decade of education experience in the classroom. She is kind-hearted and has a passion for meeting new people. She enjoys helping others when possible and continues to encourage her students outside of the classroom to achieve their goals.

Clara is a Spanish, highly-educated, trilingual translator. During her years in university she had the opportunity to learn some coding and she simply fell in love with it. Besides her knowledge in translation and coding, in recent years Clara has been learning about teaching and she wants to delve further into the subject. Clara’s philosophy is “enjoying and learning”; she believes that it is important for children to enjoy the learning process. The key is to have fun and trust the teachers in their learning journey. As Shinichi Suzuki once said: “When love is deep, much can be accomplished.”

A postgraduate student in Education and Digital Culture, blog writer, media producer, educator, and designer, Romina blends a multitude of talents. Romina is from Buenos Aires, and like the city's unique vibe that makes it so exceptional, Romina's wide array of expertise makes her a stand-out individual. A strong technological orientation brings out the real pro in Romina when she is educating online.

Tamar has been working with and teaching children for as long as she can remember. In sixth grade, she was teaching first graders. During middle school, she was teaching children basic computer studies. In high school, she taught at youth movements and summer camps, and today she is working as a children's teacher in a kibbutz and as a counselor at the center for the development of technological leadership. As a Black Belt in Karate, Tamar helped teach martial arts to children and teens. Tamar believes that the program for the development of technological leadership exposes the creativity of each child and opens a door for them to maximize their hidden abilities. Tamar enjoys music. She sings (and not just in the shower), plays the piano, and even tried her hand in the percussion section of an orchestra.

Itamar is a medical student at Tel Aviv University. In his free time, he likes to dive. He says that he has always loved teaching. "I find that teaching child who thirst for knowledge, like those I encounter in the program, is particularly enjoyable," he says. Itamar worked as a guide at the Bloomfield Science Museum in Jerusalem and was a counselor for high school students as part of the Model UN project, where students from different schools simulate UN deliberations. "The thing that I most love about the program is that it enables children to discover that in-depth learning can also be fun and empowering."

Liron holds a BA in Business Management and is a mother of three. For a number of years she has been teaching elementary school, middle school and high school aged children as part of the center for the development of Technological Leadership. During her work with the children, Liron discovered how to make learning enjoyable and positive, while empowering children. "During the program, the children understand that they are able to do anything and that it mainly depends on them," she says. Liron is still excited to hear the peals of joy from the children when they succeed. She is heartened every time anew from the friendships that are formed in the online classes, and she mainly enjoys the experience of working with children.

Yadira is a talented, trilingual teacher, with excellent children skills. For the past four years, Yadira has been teaching children from the age of 4 and up. She has lived in Paris while obtaining her BA and MA, and has absorbed both cultures. Yadira is organized and prepared when it comes to teaching and likes to develop new techniques to encourage and motivate her students.

Shanik is a certified teacher from Mexico, with 12 years of hands-on teaching experience. Shanik is an open-minded and open-hearted individual, whose passion includes traveling around the world while teaching and researching. Shanik has worked extensively with children of all ages, and his thirst for knowledge reflects on his students, which makes learning with him a wonderful experience. Only excellent teachers can brew up curiosity in students.

Cinthya is a motivated educator from Mexico, with an M.A in Quality of Education. The bulk of Cinthya's career has been dedicated to working as a professor at the UMAD University, where her tasks extended from teaching to managing and creating educational material. She has avidly taught a diverse population of students, from children to adults. Cinthya strongly values the power of education, and her drive and commitment continuously inspire her students.

Andrea is a fully bilingual, Modern Languages graduate from Venezuela. Teaching, writing, and promoting the importance of education have been the main principles on her agenda. Andrea's passion and love of teaching reverberates throughout her career, so it is no wonder that Andrea chooses to engage in education.

From one of the world’s most multicultural cities, Toronto, Canada, Jennifer's excellent communication and interpersonal skills can overcome any culture barriers. Although originally a Neuroscience and Psychology graduate, Jennifer has been teaching and instructing children and adults in various fields for 18 years. Jennifer's excellent technological orientation, combined with patience, sensitivity, and effective communication skills, ensure a fun and productive learning experience.