Kübra Çekmegeli (Co-President)
Kübra Çekmegeli is a Fulbright master’s grantee from Ankara, Turkey who is pursuing her master’s degree in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) as a second-year graduate student at Teachers College. Kübra earned her bachelor’s degree in English Language Teaching (ELT) from Hacettepe University in Ankara in 2018 and participated in several international exchange programs prior to and during her undergraduate studies. In the summer of 2016, she participated in the Disney International Program – an exchange program that brings people of other countries to the U.S. for a summer to live and work at the Disney World resort in Orlando, FL. As a 4th-year undergraduate, she collaborated with peers to launch the first student conference for her ELT department at Hacettepe, attended and presented at ELT conferences in Turkey, and participated in the International Green Employment Summit for the Erasmus+ program. After completing her bachelor’s degree, Kübra taught English language at the post-secondary level for two years. As a graduate student, Kübra is now looking forward to furthering her experience in communicating and negotiating with her peers and other AL/TESOL enthusiasts by participating in the AL/TESOL Roundtable student organization. |
Luok Shiang (Pan) Yong (Co-President)
Luok Shiang Yong or Pan is a second year MA candidate in the Pk-12 track. She was born and raised in Malaysia, but have lived in the city for some time now while doing her undergrad degree at NYU. Prior to starting in the TESOL program, she was a childhood/special Ed major and have taught in New York City, Berlin, and my hometown, Malacca. She spends her free time museum hopping, exploring the city, and imposing book recommendations on people. She aspires to be a famous dogstagrammer, but a career in special Ed/ ESL seems more promising at the moment. She looks forward to meeting more people in the TC community this semester, especially from the TESOL/AL family! |
Kara Lyu (Social & Publicity Co-Chair)
Kara is a second year MA student in the TESOL general track. She graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a B.S. in the Biological Sciences. During her undergraduate career, she co-founded Chinese Undergraduate Students Association (CUSA) and organized cultural events for Chinese community in Pittsburgh area. With a strong interest in film production and performance, she has involved in several micro films making and performing. With a passion for story writing, she started writing screenplays and opened an WeChat official account. She believes there is more than one form of life. Kara is a future educator, but may also be a writer, an actress, or a singer. She is looking forward to meeting new people in New York City! |
Shitong (Ashely) Zhang (Social & Publicity Co-Chair)
Shitong (Ashely) Zhang is a second-year MA student in the TESOL program at Teachers College, Columbia University. She studied English literature in college, but when helping senior high students with their English, witnessing their progress gave her a bigger sense of achievement. To become a professional English teacher and help students more effectively, she intends to learn more about linguistic theory and pedagogy, and have more training and experience in teaching here. She still loves literature, watching movies, and playing Guqin (a very traditional Chinese instrument). Let her know if you want to get to know her better! |
Adibah (Research & Forum Co-Chair) Adibah is a second-year Master’s student in Applied Linguistics at Teachers College, Columbia University. Hailing from a small town in Indonesia called Pasuruan, she discovered her passion for English teaching from high school when she helped her juniors with their English homework. With her Fulbright scholarship, she hopes to learn deeper how to teach English effectively through meaningful interaction and corrective feedback. Adibah also wants more Indonesian kids to speak English so that she volunteers in the English Speaking Buddies program, organized by the Indonesian Student Association (Permias) in NY. She likes walking at the parks, watching thriller movies, and cooking Korean dishes in her free time. Exchanging postcards is also her favorite; let her know if you want to be her penpals! |
Virginia (Gini) Peck-Phillips (Research & Forum Co-Chair) My name is Virginia and I'm a second-year MA student in the TESOL ELA dual certification program. I graduated from the College of the Holy Cross in 2017, then taught music in Palestine and Rwanda. Thereafter, I took a summer intensive TESOL Certification program which helped me find my passion for TESOL. In my spare time I love to travel, play with my cat, and read books. |
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