the sesame project
ABOUT US
ABOUT US
We are a passionate group of over three hundred high school and college students dedicated to making education equal and accessible for everyone. Our diverse group of tutors spans North America and beyond, offering free 1:1 tutoring, group lessons, camps, and seminars through virtual platforms like Zoom. We have served over two thousand K-9 students across a broad range of academic and extracurricular subjects. Additionally, we partner with organizations and Title I schools to bring valuable resources to underserved students.
We believe that learning should be fun, enjoyable and engaging. Our mission is to provide exploration-based learning opportunities that inspire young students to discover their passions and pursue their interests.
BRANCHES
BRANCHES
The Sesame Project is an organization that is constantly growing. Founded in San Diego, California, we now have branches across North America. We can't wait to expand to new areas and reach new people.
-
San Diego, CA, USA
-
New York, NY, USA
-
New Jersey, USA
-
Vancouver, BC, Canada
-
Irvine, CA, USA
-
San Francisco, CA, USA
-
Hawaii, USA
-
Texas, USA
-
Minnesota, USA
-
Nashville, TN, USA
-
North Carolina, USA
-
Georgia, USA
-
Long Island, NY, USA
We are also very grateful to our tutor volunteers outside of North America from: England, India, Dubai, Vietnam, China and Turkey, for the generosity of their time and gifts of their talents.
MEET THE STAFF
MEET THE STAFF
KAYLEY
President & Director for Girls in STEM
Kayley is a student at The Bishop's School in the Class of 2027. Kayley loves helping kids learn through exploration, and believes that fun is a crucial part in education. She also hopes to share her passion for STEM and encourage young girls to pursue STEM subjects. In her free time, Kayley likes to code, play sports, play violin, do robotics, and cook.
SHIRLEY
Co-President
Shirley is a student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Class of 2027) and is the founder and co-president of the Sesame Project (TSP). Shirley created TSP after noticing the difficulties students faced while transitioning to virtual school. She views the organization as a way for her to give back to her community and finds a lot of happiness knowing that students may benefit from TSP's services. Shirley hopes to share this joy and compassion with the organization's tutors and students! In her free time, Shirley likes to write poetry, code, dance, play piano, and draw.
AVA
Vice President
Ava Khossravi is a student at Canyon Crest Academy class of 2026. She has taught many different classes at The Sesame Project VTO including English, Math, and Drawing. She aims to inspire students to continue their learning journey through her teaching at VTO.
ANOUSHKA
Vice President & Curriculum Director of English
Anoushka Majumder is a student of the graduating class of 2027 at Scripps Ranch High School. With a passion for communication, she is always looking to make meaningful connections. An amateur poet with a philosophical bent of mind, Anoushka hopes to help young learners hone their skills in reading, writing, and literary analysis. She is also an avid science enthusiast, with a deep fascination for the neurobehavioral space. Outside of academic commitments, she finds great fulfillment in arts and crafts, swimming, and spending time with her BFF (her younger sister).
ANNA
Director of Communications
Anna Yang, Class of 2026, currently attends the Bishop’s School. She is a member of the school’s Model United Nations team and student government, which allow her to meet new people and talk about current events. She has also helped out with various summer camps at a local museum, and enjoys teaching younger students. As the Director of Communications, she hopes to increase VTO’s social media presence, and to spread the word about our organization! Beyond school, she plays competitive soccer, fosters kittens, and enjoys reading and sewing.
EMILY
Director of Development
Emily is a senior at Canyon Crest Academy in San Diego, California. She is passionate about purpose-driven science, and, as a leader in encouraging students to pursue their education, she loves working with students from all over the world. Emily also enjoys performing interesting experiments, reading about our ever-changing world, and helping others witness the empowering intersection of STEM, the humanities, and real world solutions to problems! Emily seeks to inspire youth to pursue their passions and hopes to better the world through her work.
PAULINA
Curriculum Director of Computer Science
Paulina Ai is a student in the class of 2024 at the Bishop’s School. She has an immense appreciation for the cycle of mentorship that occurs from student to teacher, and participates in this cycle by tutoring younger students. Throughout highschool, Paulina fell in love with the creativity of computer science and she hopes to encourage other students to explore their passions as the curriculum director of CS. Outside of school, she enjoys coding projects and volunteering at STEM events.
RAGHAV
Director of New York Branch
Raghav Ramkumar is a part of the class of 2024 at Herricks Senior High School in Long Island, New York. He loves STEM classes and doing hands-on labs and research. He also has participated in many math competitions such as the AMCs, MathCON, and has qualified for being a finalist every year. As Head of New York Branch, he hopes to help students learn about extracurricular subjects more, and find their true passions in life. He enjoys cooking late at night and playing badminton in his free time.
BRANDON
Director of Vancouver Branch
Brandon Sun is a student at St Johns School in the Class of 2025 and is part of the IB Program. Some of Brandon’s interests include soccer, basketball, and math. As the Director of the Vancouver Branch Brandon wants to create a network of students and tutors in the Vancouver area so that students are able to get the help they need for certain subjects from teachers who are comfortable and have the knowledge to teach those subjects to meet the students’ needs.
AFNAN
Director of Long Island Branch
Afnan is a part of the Class of 2025 at Herricks Senior High School. He is incredibly passionate about STEM classes, as well as conducting scientific research, and enjoys helping others develop skills related to these fields. In his free time, he is fond of solving logic puzzles, playing badminton, and reading. As Director of the Long Island Branch, he hopes to spread awareness about the The Sesame Project VTO and help reach as many people as possible.
RHYTHM
Director of Georgia Branch
Rhythm Bazari is a student at Woodward Academy, class of 2027. The reason he joined The Sesame Project is to bridge the opportunity gaps between students and people to prepare the next generations for the world to come and loves to teach kids about robotics. In his free time, he enjoys building robots and hearing music in his free time. He hopes to create an awesome network in Georgia!
SUKRITI
Sukriti Patro is a student at Scripps Ranch High School, Class of 2027! She is passionate about exposing kids to STEM and volunteering for a better world. Sukriti has a strong background in STEM education, youth mentorship, and public speaking. She views this organization as an amazing way to help the community and spark imagination. Sukriti has also had experience with this organization as she attended workshops as a kid. Beyond school, Sukriti enjoys playing basketball, videography, and hanging out with friends.
Director of Community Service
Thank you to our past staff members for your contributions!
PAST STAFF MEMBERS
SUMANA
Vice President of Student Affairs
Sumana Nandipati is a student at Canyon Crest Academy Class of 2025. She has a passion for teaching students, especially about topics that will help them achieve their future careers. Sumana has a great passion for Computer Science and is part of her school's competitive robotics team. Her hobbies include studying AI, growing plants, and reading fantasy. She hopes to expand VTO by creating more opportunities for students involved in the program.
KATRINA
Curriculum Director of Mathematics
Katrina is a student at Canyon Crest Academy Class of 2027. She enjoys solving math problems and has participated in various math competitions, and is passionate about encouraging other girls to explore the field of STEM. In her free time, she enjoys reading, playing sports, baking, and dancing. She hopes to help expand VTO and promote education across the community.
MEGAN APOSTOL
Vice President & Director of Operations
Megan Apostol is a student at Canyon Crest Academy in the class of 2023. She enjoys writing, listening to music, and spending time with family and friends. Megan has a passion for tutoring as she also teaches young students art and music in the AMASE program. As Operations Director, she hopes to connect tutors and tutees and expand the organization.
KEVIN ZHU
Vice President & Director of New York Branch
Kevin Zhu is a student at Jericho Senior High School in NY as part of the class of 2023. As the director of the NY Branch, he hopes to create a network of students and tutors throughout the east coast. He is passionate about a variety of disciplines, including writing, piano performance, and mathematics. Many elements of his interests have been part of him from a young age. Kevin also loves to teach students, with experience in teaching from Theta Math Org, independent music teaching, and several in-school tutoring opportunities.
Dylan Kim
Chief Financial Officer and Director of Nashville Branch
Dylan Kim, a student at Vanderbilt University, is the director of the Nashville Branch and hopes to bring a new level of excitement to students in the South through his strong enthusiasm and passion for the organization that began when he joined the organization as a junior in high school. He has founded various teaching organizations in the past such as the Young Investors Association and hopes to bring his expertise and love of teaching to the organization. He currently manages a Hedge Fund and is in the process of creating his own NFT as the CFO of a separate startup company. In his spare time, he likes to play sports and was a varsity wrestler and school record holder as a senior in high-school.
Alice Mandlis
Director of Vancouver Branch
Alice is a student in the University Transition Program class of 2022. Though she always had a strong interest in STEM subjects, she also pursues other passions including debate, art and music. She is glad to be able to be a part of the Sesame Project's staff team and is very enthusiastic about contributing and helping other students and tutors who also have a passion for academics and learning.
Richelle Moskichev
Director of Hawaii Branch, Curriculum Co-Director of Science
Richelle Moskvichev is the Hawaii Branch director and Science Curriculum Co-Director. Richelle has a Bachelors of Science in Physics and Computer Science from the University of Oregon. She has worked for several years as an Earth and Climate researcher, and has traveled all over the United states. She loves to mentor and tutor younger students. Being from Oahu Hawaii has inspired her to lead the Hawaii branch, and she hopes to create lots of engaging content for students to love science as a Co-Director! In her free time, Richelle loves being outside, painting, and traveling.
Lina Kang
Director of New Jersey Branch
Lina Kang is a current student at Cresskill High School, Class of 2023. She is trilingual in English, Japanese, and Korean, and she has been studying Spanish since elementary school. Lina has earned a full score on the Japanese SAT and AP test along with the Korean SAT. She has prior tutoring experience from teaching Japanese children transitioning to the American curriculum to guiding high school students preparing to study abroad in Japan. As the Foreign Language Curriculum Director, Lina desires to share her immense love of discovering new languages through interactive and meaningful lessons and hopes she can be the bridge between diverse cultures.
Ava Khossravi
Director of Educational Resources
Ava Khossravi is a freshman at Canyon Crest Academy. She has always been very curious, inspiring her to help other curious minds. She enjoys teaching and working with people of different backgrounds and interests. Her favorite subjects to teach are analyzing literature, the science of how things work, and the interpretation of art. As the Director of Education of the Volunteer Tutors Organization, she hopes to understand the perspectives of different tutors and tutees and help them promote education and learning across the globe.
Anshi Kanodia
Community Service Representative
Anshi Kanodia is a student at Canyon Crest Academy and will graduate from high school in the year 2023. She loves to help other students and has had experience with tutoring students since middle school. In addition, she likes being associated with various organizations and clubs that provide opportunities to educate others. In her role as a Community Service Representative for the Volunteer Tutors Organization, she leads and helps the team to keep track of the service hours so that the organization can create an impactful difference in the community.
AARON WU
Community Service Representative (Vancouver Branch)
Aaron Wu attends Port Moody Secondary School in the Class of 2023 and is part of the IB program. From this program, he is hoping to develop some expertise in the work environment, as well as help out students that are struggling and/or want to push ahead. Aaron is interested in practical approaches and will strive to teach with a more hands-on style. In addition, he is passionate about math, music, and fiction (reading and film). He can teach people of all ages, and is dedicated to teaching his students. He is looking forward to working with more students.
JOSHUA ZHANG
Curriculum Director of Math
Joshua Zhang attends Canyon Crest Academy and is a part of the high school class of 2022. He enjoys studying most STEM subjects in school, however, he finds math the most intellectually fulfilling, which is also why he has elected to serve as the Math Curriculum Director. Outside of school, he can be found playing badminton with the CCA team, arguing with his peers in parliamentary debate, or delivering a cross examination in Mock Trial. He's looking forward to working with K-8 students and helping them develop their mathematical skills.
EMILY WONG
Curriculum Co-Director of English
Emily currently attends Canyon Crest Academy as part of the class of 2023. She actively works as a yearbook staff and competes on the debate team, both of which help to articulate her passion for language arts. As the founder and president of her school’s calligraphy club, she also has experience in teaching other students the basics of modern calligraphy through hands-on learning and collaborative workshops. Some of her other interests include bullet journaling, Girl Scouts, and creative writing. Emily enthusiastically looks forward to serving as the Curriculum co-Director of English and hopes to further expand and support VTO.
JILLIAN CHANG
Curriculum Co-Director of English
Jillian Chang, Class of 2023, attends Great Neck South High School in New York. She became involved with Volunteer Tutors out of her enthusiasm and willingness for working with younger students. As a curriculum director, she believes that Volunteer Tutors is a great way for young students to receive the additional academic assistance that they need. In addition to tutoring, some of Jillian's other interests include cello and computer programming. In her free time, she loves to bake, travel, and watch Netflix shows/Marvel movies.
IZZY TANG
Curriculum Director of Music
Izzy Tang, a student at The Bishop’s School in the class of 2023, is the the music curriculum director for VTO. She’s been connected with music ever since her first violin lesson at the age of 5, and she hopes to share this bond with others. Encouraging the younger generation to pursue this art form and guiding them through their journey is absolutely fulfilling for her. She wants to share her enthusiasm to expand the love for this subject by being a part of this wonderfully passionate team!
