Having completed the Math Circles program himself, Mario has a unique perspective on the program which allows him to communicate with and teach his students effectively. He has been involved with Math Potentials in nearly every aspect, first as a student of the program to a teacher, administrator, and now the Programs Director. Mario has a background in the field of mining engineering, which has granted him a strong math foundation.

Nayeon has completed her Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and is currently completing her master’s in Secondary Math Education at Simon Fraser University. She is a full-time math teacher working in the Surrey School District. Nayeon is interested in exploring various math curricula to better assist students’ learning. Outside of teaching, Nayeon likes to travel and try out different cuisines.

Sachiko believes that math is as beautiful as music. However, to cultivate the ability to appreciate the beauty of math we need to learn the subject. She hopes that her classroom is filled with the joy of learning math. She takes on different roles as a math teacher, such as a TOC in private schools, a private tutor, a facilitator in workshops, and a classroom teacher. Sachiko has also earned her MMT (Master of Mathematics Teaching) from the University of Waterloo.

Pawel graduated from Warsaw University with Masters Degree in Applied Mathematics. After graduation, he worked in a prestigious high school in Warsaw for four years teaching mathematics and computer science. When he moved to Canada he obtained his BEd Degree at the University of Calgary in 1995 and then a Masters Degree from Simon Fraser University in 2004 with a specialty in high school math education. This lead him to teach high school math in Toronto, Calgary, and Vancouver. Pawel now lives in Vancouver with his family. He loves playing logical games such as Chess, GO and Bridge; he enjoys classical music, especially the piano; and he loves to take advantage of the outdoors, including weekly hikes, skiing adventures, swimming sessions and bike rides.

Mike’s background is in electrical engineering, and he has worked at the university level as an instructor and in student affairs. Mike is currently working towards his teaching certificate to fulfill his childhood dream of teaching math at the secondary school level. In his spare time, he volunteers as community basketball coach in south Surrey.

Marcel Sincraian has been working with numbers whole his life as an Engineer, Accountant, Math and Physics teacher. While an Engineer, he got his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering. He participated in European engineering research projects in soil dynamics. He published papers in international Engineering Journals and international Conferences. He is a passionate, warm, and funny Mathematics and Physics teacher. He is always ready to share his knowledge in Math and Physics. Because of his teaching passion, he decided to help the students with a few math books. From Introduction to Calculus to pure Calculus. He is continually writing new Math and Physics books hoping to help students with other parts of Mathematics and Physics. His hobbies are, reading, traveling, camping.

Iulia completed her degree in Mathematics in Romania where she taught for several years before moving to Canada in 2008. She grew up observing her mother teaching and discovered her passion for mathematics when her elementary school teacher encouraged her to develop her talent and trained her for the Math Olympiads. Upon moving to Canada, she completed her degree in the field of education and earned a B.Ed. degree at SFU, and continued to work in her chosen career as a mathematics teacher. Iulia is currently teaching a wide range of grades, including elementary and high school students, in whom she seeks to inspire the love of learning mathematics. Outside of school, she enjoys spending time in nature, traveling and exploring new places.

Hee jin has a degree in Mathematics from UBC and has completed her UBC B.Ed. Program. She is currently working towards her Master of Mathematics for Teachers from the University of Waterloo. She works as a teacher within the Coquitlam School District and is a private tutor. She would like to reinvent the image of a Mathematics classroom through the use of innovative teaching methodologies and varied assessment. Her goal is to encourage students to take an active and engaging role in their learning by facilitating opportunities for inquiry, collaboration and reflection. Outside of teaching, she loves camping and travelling around the world.

Solmaz Khodaeifaal is the Programs Director for Science Circles and has a background in Atomic Applied Physics. Before coming to Canada, she worked as a mathematics and physics teacher in public and private high schools in Tehran. She has taught IB Physics High Level and Standard Level. Since 2011 she has been working with the International Baccalaureate Organization and its Diploma/Career-Related Program. Throughout her master’s degree completion at the University of British Columbia, she was involved in a number of field-based projects and experiences in Education. She also holds a master’s degree in Business Administration, MBA. All her background encouraged her in pursuing a doctoral program in Science Education with a particular focus on Curriculum and Pedagogy at Simon Fraser University. Her focus is on students’ engagement, their active roles in learning, and how adolescents can learn quantum mechanics at their early ages. With the experience of teaching physics and mathematics for various levels from elementary to high school, she strongly believes and emphasizes that youths—8th and 9th graders—are able to develop their learning of quantum mechanics with a focussed, well-designed, and aimed curriculum on waves principles and basics of quantum physics—wave-quantum-curriculum. She practices different creative pedagogical approaches in teaching and believes that learning occurs as a consequence of an individual’s direct activities and personal experiences. Solmaz thrives in educational environments with students, teachers, instructors, facilitators, educators, and whoever is passionate about making a difference and having a positive influence on learning and teaching mathematical sciences like physics.

in industry and secondary education, holding a BASc in Computer Engineering and a BEd in Computer Science and Mathematics. But don’t let that fool you – he still hasn’t grown up. Gavin loves to watch Star Trek, debate Star Wars, build Lego, and climb boulders. All these passions fuel his love of discovery, which is the basis of his teaching philosophy. Through exploration, observation, perseverance, and discussion, Gavin‘s hope is that students discover a newfound excitement for deeper understanding and creative problem solving.

Bianca has completed a 5 year Degree in Mathematics in Romania, where she also taught for five years before moving to Canada. In 1999 she came to Vancouver where she obtained her teaching degree (2001) and Master Degree (2004) from Simon Fraser University. Throughout her teaching career, Bianca has taught full time at various public secondary schools. Bianca currently teaches grades 8-12 including Calculus. Occasionally, she tutors IB kids in the SL and HL streams. Outside school, Bianca enjoys cooking for her family, reading and hiking.

After graduating from high school in Iran, Ali Seyedfarshi travelled to UK for higher education. He completed General Certificate of Education in London and attended Thames University to complete his degree in Engineering. Ali continued his education obtaining his M.Sc. degree in Theoretical Physics and Mathematics. In 1990, Ali Immigrated to Canada, and ever since then pursued his old passion in teaching. He worked at Collingwood for 16 years teaching AP Calculus AB, AP Calculus BC, and AP Statistics. In 2005 Ali was awarded teacher fellowship from prestigious University of St. Andrews in Scotland. Ali continued his teaching career at Southpointe Academy in Delta, BC. Ali is very passionate about teaching and he says he finds himself at home in Math Potentials, where our younger generations are offered the ultimate challenge in education, specifically in Mathematics education.