Meet the Team at Mathnasium of Culver City

Diego Mateo

Hi, my name is Diego Mateo. I am an assistant center director at Mathnasium of Culver City. I go to Santa Monica College and am studying Economics with a minor in Accounting. I enjoy bodybuilding, listening to music, and long drives. Before becoming an Assistant Center Director, I was an instructor. I enjoyed my position as an instructor because I got to work with kids with all types of personalities and characteristics which kept the job fun and fresh. Now that I'm an Assistant Center Director, I relish the adrenaline from being quick on my feet to make sure every aspect of the center runs smoothly. I love my position because I get to exercise some of my core virtues every day like leadership, responsibility, teamwork, and communication. I am very proud to work in an esteemed environment full of bright people and youthful students here at Mathnasium!

Mayra Ornelas

Hi, my name is Mayra. I graduated from UCLA with a Bachelor of Science in Psychobiology. I enjoy listening to music, watching baseball (Go Dodgers), and spending time with my family and friends. I like working at Mathnasium because I enjoy helping students understand math, one of my favorite subjects. I especially like seeing how happy students are when they finally understand a difficult concept.

Mel Strom

My name is Mel. I’ve devoted most of my adult life to teaching and researching natural language – Russian, Russian linguistics, literature, and history. But early on, while struggling with the early stages of dissertation research at UCLA, I spent a few years teaching math, physics, and computers at Brentwood School, here in Los Angeles. That itself was not so far out of character, however, as my first love, in school and university, was and still is physics. Now I find myself returning to mathematics, the language of natural science, and I find I never really left it. The joy of doing mathematics with my grandchildren in recent years led me to getting the opportunity to do so here at Mathnasium, too.

Aaron Cruz

Hello! I'm Aaron. I graduated from USC with a B.S. in Chemical Engineering, but before that I was a student at Venice High School. I've always enjoyed being active; I played soccer competitively growing up, and I've danced traditional Mexican folklorico for USC live on stage. I also love talking math. It can be a frustrating puzzle when learning, but once you get the hang of it, math turns into a fun game, and I want to help make it more fun for other students.

Yanga Booker

Hi, my name is Yanga. I'm currently a senior at Culver City High School. I love playing soccer and spending time with my family. At school, I'm passionate about math and engineering, which led me to found Ecubed, our school's engineering club. I find fulfillment in tutoring students in math, because it gives me a sense of pride when I can use my skills to help others gain clarity and confidence in a subject they might struggle with. Alongside being a peer tutor at CCHS, I also love working on math with students in my second language of Spanish. It is a pleasure to be able to aid young students for a job, and I look forward to continuing to do so at Mathnasium!

Rachel Tiet

Hi! My name is Rachel. I am a graduate student at the University of Massachusetts Global for a teaching credential in life science and a Master of Arts in Teaching. I’ve always loved math and science, and I want to push the boundaries of teaching these subjects so that they can be more accessible to all students. I love working with the students at Mathnasium, and I’m always glad to help students find which learning strategies work best for them. In my free time, I enjoy playing video games with my family and playing with our dog.

Faran Hassan

Hi! My name is Faran, and I’m currently attending Culver City High School. I love engineering and urban planning which has contributed to my passion for math. I hope to help students develop confidence in their math abilities and to help them enjoy approaching new math concepts. In my free time, I love playing video games, and spending time with my friends and family. I’m also a part of the high school’s tennis team and I love to play tennis whenever I can.

Kimani Moore

Hi, my name is Kimani, and I'm enjoying my senior year at Culver City High School! I hope to attend a four-year university in California majoring in Civil Engineering or any related field; I love architecture and buildings in general, so that, in combination with my love of physics and math, has inspired my goals. At Mathnasium, I wish to share this appreciation for STEM subjects and learn to be a better teacher of that which I thoroughly enjoy. Academics aside, I'm part of the high school's cross-country and volleyball teams and love to bike wherever I can. I've also recently picked up guitar, so I can learn to play my favorite songs!

Leo Shon

Hi, my name is Leo. I graduated from USC and spent a few years in the music industry as a producer and mix/mastering engineer. In my free time, I enjoy working on music, playing video games, watching movies, and spending time with friends. My favorite part of working at Mathnasium is helping students overcome their challenges and ensuring they have fun while learning!

Oliver Lahe

Hi my name is Oliver and I’m currently in my first year at SMC. I plan to transfer to a 4-year university majoring in Mechanical Engineering. In my free time I enjoy playing soccer, hanging out with friends, playing video games, listening to music, and watching tv/movies. I know the frustration of math not making sense, but I also know how rewarding it feels when you finally figure it out. I would like to help kids experience the same satisfaction, as well as assist them in building a strong base in math as they move into higher classes