Meet the ENGin Team
Our experienced and enthusiastic team consists of students and professionals located across the United States and Ukraine. Most of us have personally experienced the challenges of mastering spoken English and the life-changing opportunities that English fluency brings. We are passionate about bringing these opportunities to every motivated student who wants to improve their spoken English.

Katerina Manoff
Founder
Katerina has 5+ years experience teaching English and managing online language learning programs. She has also helped launch multiple nonprofit and for-profit initiatives in the education space. She holds a Master's in Education from Harvard University.

Taya Zhernosiekova
Program Director
Taya is passionate about organizing social projects on various topics and working with volunteers in NGOs. Also, conducting thought-provoking English speaking clubs gives her much pleasure. Activities dedicated to improving socially vulnerable groups' lives strike a chord with her. She is dreaming to learn social psychology one day. Taya truly believes in empathy and people's open curious mind. And she can't live without communication with people, long walks and dancing.

Mykola Popadiuk
Country Director, Ukraine
Mykola is engaged in different educational activities — he is a teacher, trainer, leader and a Project Coordinator of various educational programs and online courses. Especially, he’s involved in civic education and improving the digital skills of Ukrainians. He supports and implements changes in Ukrainian education both locally and nationally. Mykola is in the ENGin team in order to spread the educational opportunities of the program for students and teachers from all the corners of Ukraine.

Rose Tatum
Director of Volunteering,
Corporate & Community Partnerships
Rose is a passionate nonprofit professional who has nearly 10 years of experience in developing and leading volunteer programs. As a devoted volunteer herself, Rose understands that the mission of nonprofit organizations can only be fully achieved with the help of volunteers. Rose studied at Appalachian State University, earning a Bachelor’s in Global Studies with a focus in peace, conflict, and human rights, along with minors in Nonprofit Management and Spanish. Social justice, peacebuilding, and equality are all issues close to her heart. She is an avid traveler, as well as an advocate for language and cultural exchange.

Lana Kostenko
Managing Director
Lana Kostenko is a dynamic leader with a tech industry background rooted in the Silicon Valley ecosystem. Based in San Francisco, Lana brings a global perspective, combining her Ukrainian heritage from Kyiv with her experiences in California and the UK.
As Managing Director of ENGin, Lana drives the company's vision and fosters its growth through a collaborative, innovative, and empowering leadership style. She is committed to optimizing teams and unlocking their full potential.
Beyond her professional pursuits, Lana is a passionate advocate for removing barriers to education for young people around the world, particularly in Ukraine.
Lana holds an MBA from the University of Cambridge and is currently pursuing an EMPA (Executive Master in Public Administration) from the London School of Economics (LSE).

Margarita Kutsa
Director of Teaching and Learning
Since childhood, Margarita dreamed of traveling a lot, which motivated her to learn English, and, in fact, it's great when the passion grows into a desire to pursue a career in foreign languages. As part of the Erasmus + international mobility program studied at the University of Córdoba (Spain). Rita is convinced that this experience has helped not only to improve English and Spanish language skills, but also to develop soft skills and cultural integration. Rita is passionate about helping Ukrainians to improve their English skills.

Violetta Khlystun
Support Team Lead
Violetta is a manager with more than 6 years of experience in support and communications field. She likes to help people and always do her best to make students and volunteers happy. She likes ENGin because here you can meet a lot of great people from all over the world. It's a great opportunity to know more about different cultures and help Ukrainians to improve their English level.

Oleksandra Vasylkivska
Community Manager
Oleksandra is a linguist and translator, she opens the English-speaking world to Ukrainians during her online classes. In love with travel, she has already visited about 14 countries, where the most valuable treasure for her is people who transmit culture and traditions throughout their lives. She collects postcards and captures memories on tape. Hiking, skiing, painting, creativity - it's all about her. In ENGin, Oleksandra renews and moderates a community for you to BELONG with your people - it's like a rainbow after the rain.

Liza Sadurska
SMM/Designer Specialist
Lisa is a publisher and content producer by education, but her professional vector at ENGin is currently graphic design. She discovered the program as a student almost from its inception and is happy to be now part of a team that makes free language education possible for children and youth through international communication. In addition, Lisa actively volunteers in the artistic direction, teaching choreographic and theatrical art to schoolchildren, because she believes that creativity and practical-oriented communication among teenagers are the basis of their future path as successful and happy members of society.

Maria Wood
Director of Volunteering
Maria is a collaborative and versatile leader with extensive experience in nonprofit organizations and a focus on community building through education, the arts, and occasionally politics. Her work breaking down barriers and improving understanding among people and communities has taken her to the United Nations, the White House, and the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, among many other locales and venues. As Co-Director of Volunteering, Maria works with volunteers, partners, and institutions in the US and worldwide to maximize the impact of the one-to-one relationships at the heart of ENGin’s mission, connecting individuals and cultures, and ultimately connecting Ukraine to the world. An eager traveler and passionate learner, Maria holds a BA in American Studies and a Certificate in Ethnomusicology from Smith College.

Vasia Zaretsky
Lead Developer
Vasia lives in Kyiv and is studying biotechnology at Taras Shevchenko National University. He has completed courses at Samsung IT School and Prog.kiev.ua. He has over 2 years of experience in server, mobile and web development using different languages and is a cofounder and engineer in two startups.

Tetiana Fomenko
Customer Support Agent & Interviewer
Tetiana has been involved into customer support in different fields for more than 5 years. She has been into learning English since childhood so she does remember the way and possible difficulties a person may face during it. And now she is eager to help Ukrainians as much as possible during their English language mastery, to be that helpful bridge in-between ENGin, students and volunteers. In addition, Tetiana believes that education is one of the most important keys to the intelligent and developed society, as our youth will be leading the country further. So at this point intercultural exchange will be extremely useful. Mostly her free time is dedicated to hiking and reading literature, as well as doing some sports.

Serhii Shcherban
Partnership Manager
Serhii Shcherban is a youth worker, fundraiser, mentor, facilitator with over 6 years of experience in the youth policy sector. He has successfully implemented various educational, youth, social, and even esports projects.
Serhii is particularly passionate about creating partnerships between businesses, non-governmental organizations, and different communities. He believes in the principle of "Think globally, act locally" and sees collaboration as a key to realizing this principle. Serhii also provides consultancy and mentoring support to organizations in implementing fundraising strategies in their operations. In his role as the ENGin Partnership Manager, Serhii will be working on establishing partnerships that open new horizons and opportunities. He understands the importance of collaboration and knows how to find common interests for cooperation.

Yelyzaveta Savytska
Matcher & HR
Liza believes NGOs and social projects can influence changes in the world. Experience with ENGin opened up new educational and career opportunities for her, so she dreams that as much as possible Ukrainian youth have the same. Liza is passionate about volunteering and traveling, and her strongest value is people.

Gulnaz Madadli
Student & Volunteer Support
Gulnaz is studying for a Master's degree in Intercultural Communication in Education and the Workplace in Poland. She has a bachelor's degree in philology and a master's in the methodology of teaching. She believes that learning new languages broadens one's horizons. Therefore, she is excited to help students to use ENGin and improve their English.

Yana Voloshyna
Volunteer Support Specialist
Yana is passionate about promoting human rights and helping vulnerable people. Five years she worked in international organizations, such as UNHCR and IRC and have two years of practical experience as an administrative attache, working at the Honorary Consulate of the Republic of Cyprus. Yana personally attended hundreds of interviews with asylum seekers at Odesa Migration Agency and drafted dozens of recommendations on individual cases. She is not afraid of any challenges as how Jane Austen had previously said, my power only rises at every attempt to intimidate me. She have a cute pug Ponchik and can't imagine her life without traveling.
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Kateryna Kvasha
Interviewer / Operations associate
Applying for the interviewer position wasn't a spontaneous decision for Katya as she has been our student almost since the first days ENGin was created. She studies economics and is head of the marketing department at a nonprofit organization. Katya likes spending her free time playing chess, dancing and volunteering. As a social activist who has been engaged in educational projects since her school years, she knows firsthand the difficulties one may face because of not having enough English level. Today Katya keeps growing together with ENGin and is eager for helping Ukrainian youth in achieving their goals.

Nastya Nesterova
Developer
Nastya is a Fronted Developer and UI/UX Designer. She receives a bachelor's degree in KNU. Anastasia is confident in herself, her abilities and professional qualities. She’s convinced that English is a basic skill for a successful career, so she is glad to work at this project, which helps Ukrainian children to get a future. Also Nastya hopes to bring some fresh ideas to make the project better of the best.

Yuliia Sydoruk
Interviewer
Yuliia has graduated from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv with a bachelor's degree in Philosophy. She is an activist, who believes that Human Rights are above all. She took part in different nonprofit projects and now is really excited to be a part of the ENGin team as an interviewer. Yuliia believes that knowledge of English nowadays is an essential skill, because it unlocks infinite possibilities for both personal and professional growth. In her free time, she loves gathering with friends or spending time peacefully with her dog.

Nicole Viloria
Volunteer Trainer
Nicole started learning English at a young age in Venezuela. Since she moved to the US, she has made it her goal to help others struggling with learning the language through her skills and enthusiasm. As a lover of languages, writing, and reading, she wishes to translate and write novels of her own. She is majoring in English Literature at The Honors College at Miami Dade College, aiming to minor in Creative Writing. Wanting to help others learn English, Nicole joined ENGin as a volunteer in October of 2021 and hopes to not only help her student but also encourage new volunteers to do so as well!

April Rossetti
Volunteer Outreach Associate
April has experience coordinating grants and nonprofit programs, in addition to a background as a lead educator in diverse educational settings. She is deeply committed to seeking justice and equity for marginalized communities. At ENGin, April’s focus is on volunteer outreach and recruitment - helping to scale ENGin’s volunteer base within the US and worldwide, as well as supporting volunteers in the program. Outside of her professional endeavors, April volunteers at an animal shelter and finds joy in trail running, hiking, biking, and immersing herself in captivating books. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education and American Studies from Salem State University.

Ilona Misko
Interviewer
Ilona is fond of studying history, foreign languages and psychology. She is sure that with the help of quality education, we can change the world for the better. She is also convinced of the importance of human communication and relationships for building a prosperous society.

Varvara Borysovska
Database Coordinator
Varya studied Arts Journalism at Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, but lately she has realized that working with data and analyzing it is her calling. In her opinion, structured data, especially if it’s easy to understand, benefit more than long articles, which might not be informative. But, in addition to understandable submission and structure, it’s vital for data, above all, to be accurate. And Varya does it in ENGin — she manages the database of students and volunteers, ensuring their quick and precise onboarding. Also, Varya is an ENGin student herself, and her work here contributes to her wish to help the same students as she is — those, who can’t afford to take usually quite expensive classes at the best speaking clubs or schools, and those, who feel themselves more comfortable taking one-to-one courses. To contribute to professional and personal growth through the acquisition of a high level of the English language is an essential mission for her.

Tetiana Krotova
Student and volunteer support agent
Tetiana is passionate about solving the problems of the Ukrainian education system. She is the author of four research papers and is also developing a mobile application that will help Ukrainian refugees enroll in universities abroad. Tatiana believes that the development of modern society is impossible without intercultural dialogue and knowledge of the English language.

Michael Feehan
Interviewer (Volunteer)
Mike is co-owner of an academic tutoring business. He has prior career experience as an international commercial lawyer, a business executive, and a teacher at the law school, college, and high school levels.

Yana Lagoda
Social Media Manager
Having studied English on her own, Yana understands all the challenges one might face as a beginning English learner. She is excited to grow the ENGin community through social media to help others on this journey.

Natalie Palencia
Interviewer (Volunteer)
Natalia enjoys learning about history and international relations and is passionate about human and animal rights. Volunteering with ENGin and engaging with her students has made a positive impact on her life. Once she saw a need for interviewers, she jumped at the opportunity to help others share in this experience.

Karen Goldman
Interviewer (Volunteer)
Karen has a diverse background in education, with a Master's Degree in Education and a TEFL Certification. She is passionate about working with children and adults in informal nonprofit educational settings, such as museums, schools, and social service agencies. She is also an experienced community organizer and activist. She has insight into the needs and concerns of various communities and how to mobilize and engage people around essential issues effectively. Karen is a skilled and passionate educator and community leader committed to positively impacting the world.

Rohanna White
Interviewer (Volunteer)
Rohanna has been a proud volunteer at ENGin since Spring 2022. Although she is still in high school, she is currently pursuing her Associate in Science and taking numerous Computer Science courses. She is passionate about serving others and supporting Ukrainian students. As an interviewer, she enjoys meeting new people and listening to their amazing stories! In her free time, she likes to spend time with her family, go biking and read online books.

Pirahnavi Balasothy
Interviewer (Volunteer)
Pirahnavi is a student in Canada and has always had a passion for humanitarian aid and hopes to pursue it in the future. She works with many clubs and non profit organizations locally to aid youth in STEM subjects and lead them to a better future. Through ENGin she has the opportunity to change the lives of hundreds of people around the world. The impact she has made and hopes to make is ever growing.
Volunteer Leaders
Developer:
Maks Stepanenko
Serhii Zhuravlov
Volunteer Community Leaders:
Donna Thompson (Facebook)
Shanti Fukasaku (Facebook)
Cindy Tang (Discord)
Sanika Saraf Discord)
Karishma Persad (Telegram)
Georgiana Zhang (Telegram)