Faculty and staff

Our knowledgeable instructors and staff have the skills and the experience to meet the educational needs of each student. Most of the Columbia School of English faculty hold a Master’s degree in TESOL (teaching English to speakers of other languages) and extensive experience in the field; others have a Bachelor’s in TESOL with experience working with adult English language learners. All of our instructors are passionate about teaching and learning. They provide student-focused, interactive, and relevant lessons through patient, thoughtful instruction.

Our advising staff is very experienced and able to work efficiently with a range of student legal and academic processes. They are enthusiastic in making sure that all students connect with our school community and in the city of Portland.

administration/office

Michael Park
Director
Email: michael@cs.edu
Available by appointment only

Martha Raab 
Academic Coordinator 
Available by appointment only

Christine Gentibano
Marketing Administrative Assistant 
​​Email: christine@cs.edu
Available by appointment only

​Juliana Sarmiento
International Student Advisor
Available by appointment only

Michelle Swanson
Finance Specialist 
Available by appointment only

Technical support

Roman Shevchenko
IT Director 

Faculty

Emily A.
Teacher

Emily studied at the University of Oregon and Portland State University. She previously worked for Portland Community College and has taught in China and South Korea. She also speaks French and Spanish. Her favorite part of teaching English is the opportunity to meet a lot of fun, interesting people from diverse backgrounds. 

Andy D.
Teacher

Andy received a B.A. in Applied Linguistics from Portland State, and will have M.A. TESOL from PSU in June. Since Fall 2013, he has been the TA for the grammar course that Linguistics and TESOL students must take at PSU. He has studied Russian, Spanish, and Turkish. His favorite part of teaching is talking about language, especially grammar. Watching new concepts click for students is very gratifying for him.

David D.
Study Assistant

David has an MS in Adult Learning (TESOL) and received an International TEFL Certificate after studying in Prague, Czech Republic. He has always enjoyed teaching international students because they are extremely interesting people. The opportunity to interact with them is always a rewarding experience for him.

Adam G.
Teacher/Independent Study

Adam received his BA at San Francisco State and his MA at California State University Northridge. He previously worked at the Intensive English Program on the CSUN campus. He also speaks Spanish.  

Martha Raab
Teacher

Martha received her BA in Linguistics and her MA in TESOL both at Portland State University. She previously worked for PSU and Pacific University. She speaks some French and some German. Her favorite parts of teaching English are grammar and pronunciation. 

Danielle S.
Teacher