Tahira Nawaz has over ten years’ extensive educational leadership, school development and teaching experience in UK and overseas educational establishments. She has held several leadership roles including Deputy Head and Vice Principal, and she has BSc. (Hons) and MSc. qualifications from the UK. As a PGCE qualified teacher and a certified careers consultant, Tahira has worked in Europe, Middle East, Central Asia, and the Far East. She is committed to making a positive difference in young peoples’ lives to help them achieve their true potential. Her aim has always been to lead and inspire students by training them to develop the 21st Century skills they need to compete in a diverse global economy. Tahira is looking forward to joining the High Tech Academy community, contributing to the success of the academy, immersing herself in the local community, and exploring the customs and cultures of Kazakhstan.

My name is Elina Myrttinen. I come from Finland, where I have be working as a teacher for 15 years.

This year I will be a part of the primary education team here in HTA. I will teach English, Math and

Science. Looking forward to starting this academic year with you!

My name is Adam Saligman. I am from St. Louis, USA. I studied English Literature and Writing (as well as a brief fling with Environmental Studies and Astronomy) at Washington University in St. Louis and earned my MA in Secondary School Education Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. In the past decade I have taught English Literature, Writing, Debate, and Drama at international schools in Japan, Bulgaria, and Kazakhstan. In the past two years I founded a local debate league called Qazaqstan Speech and Debate Association (QSDA) in my efforts to empower Kazakhstani students with strong academic skills and charismatic public speaking. QSDA students are now able to train and compete in both China and USA! I am honored to be part of the extraordinary team at HTA this year. In addition to teaching English Language Arts I will be coaching Public Speaking and Debate. My hobbies include photography, writing, film, and playing Magic: the Gathering. I look forward to working with everyone here!

I am originally from the UK, and have been enjoying teaching abroad for over 8 years, beginning in Thailand, China, Poland, and now Kazakhstan. I am looking forward to learning about Kazakhstan's unique culture and exploring the country. I particularly love being in nature, doing outdoor activities like hiking and cycling. I am passionate about being kind to our planet and strive to take positive action in this direction. I am very proud to become a part of the HTA team, and look forward to meeting my colleagues, HTA families and of course, the students! Here's to a fantastic and fruitful time together!

My name is Panacea Cruden and I'm originally from Scotland where I began my teaching career 4 years ago. I'm moving to Almaty from Ethiopia and look forward to becoming a part of the HTA community.

Dear parents,

Welcome to the start of the third year at HTA! A special welcome to all of our new parents, we greatly appreciate that you have chosen High Tech Academy to provide daily support for your

child's growth. We are excited about the new year and new developments at HTA.

We have added two more classes: Grade 3 and Grade 9. Our staff is also growing - we have added Finnish, Australian, and British teachers, and an American Vice Principal of Academics to join our group of local professionals. In August, we worked with our American partner organisation, The Korda Institute for Teaching, to run an “accelerator” course for our entire HTA staff and design an exercise to create a new school schedule. As a Project-Based Learning school (PBL), with these strategic additions and professional development we feel that we are continuing to provide the best possible learning environment for developing the essential skills your child will need in the 21st century.

We also reaffirmed our core values - respect, kindness, growth, freedom, responsibility, and awareness – and added courage to the list.

You, the parents, are critical to HTA. This 2019-20 academic year, we will open new opportunities for communication and involvement for you in the learning experiences of your children and the continued improvement of HTA.

We look forward to seeing you at HTA this new year!

Doris Korda founded and currently leads Korda Institute for Teaching, a 501c3 nonprofit whose singular mission is to transform the way teachers teach and learners learn. Korda developed a radically different method of teaching as a 20+ year educator after building a $1B software business. She created a globally acclaimed entrepreneurship education program and was the co-originator of the Mastery Transcript Consortium, an initiative to change the high school transcript to reflect the unique skills, strengths and interests of each learner. Korda has worked with hundreds of educators to change teaching and learning in urban and rural districts, career tech programs and schools of all types.

Мy name is Reese Matthews and I am thrilled to be a part of the High Tech Academy (HTA) team this year. I will be working with the students in the Middle School as the Head of Science, Coordinator of the year 7 & 8’s Project-Based Learning (PBL) and a member of the HTA Leadership Team. I came to Almaty from nearly 30 years of working in Africa at the university and secondary school levels. I am very excited about the potential of HTA, the amazing possibilities that PBL offers to create innovative learning environments for the students and providing them with skills they need to enter the 21st century.