Although based in Cairo, Egypt, Dr. Zhenya Goma serves on the HEART Board as Secretary of the Buddy Committee, Volunteer Coordinator, and Foreign Language Education Consultant. In 2021, she was elected to HEART’s Board of Directors.
Zhenya’s formal education focused on inter-cultural education and multi-media instruction, particularly using the internet for educational purposes. In addition to her work with foreign language instruction, she has many years of experience teaching English, Writing and Research, and English literature. Integrating technology in the classroom is a passion of Zhenya’s, and she is working with students from the United Nations International School and other institutions to create “real-life” teaching materials to help HEART students and faculty to improve their language learning and technology skills.
In addition to her formal training in foreign language and technology, Zhenya brings with her additional experience working at the University of Kansas Endowment Association, where she served as the administrative assistant to the development officer for the School of Business. This position allowed her to become familiar with the principles of fundraising for educational institutions.
“When I heard about HEART and its mission,” says Zhenya, “I felt inspired, and I wanted to help however I could, but I wasn’t sure how I could contribute. I realized that my experience creating learning materials could help with the school’s goal of empowering children to realize their full potential. I was committed to making it happen despite the physical distance between us.” Using global work applications such as teleconferencing, Facebook calling, email, and Google Drive, the team in Haiti can collaborate with people in Cairo, NYC, upstate New York, Europe, and other places in the world. It just goes to show that you don’t have to be physically present to volunteer. With creativity and a willingness to help, you can make a difference!
We would be delighted to talk with you about ways to help HEART through volunteering or donating money or materials!. Please write to us at buddyprogram@heart.org.
