Our Team at Mathnasium of Granger

Areej

Areej is a sophomore at Penn High School who is highly involved in academic and leadership activities. She participates in Spell Bowl, Debate, Model U.N., and several clubs including Key Club and Chess Club. 

With a deep appreciation for learning, Areej encourages students not just to understand math—but to excel at it. Outside of school, she enjoys figure skating, sewing, trying new foods, and relaxing with Netflix. 

Iryna

Iryna is a licensed elementary school teacher currently teaching art in South Bend. She enjoys integrating math and literacy into the creative process and has prior experience teaching sixth-grade math and supporting elementary-level math interventions. 

In her free time, Iryna loves watercolor painting, embroidery, and spending time with her two children. She brings a creative and nurturing spirit to every student interaction at Mathnasium. 

Zaina Arain

Zaina is a senior at Penn High School with plans to pursue a career in medicine. She’s an active member of DECA, Model UN, Tennis, Key Club, and several community service groups, and she’s passionate about helping others succeed. 

Zaina brings that same enthusiasm to Mathnasium, where she enjoys helping students build confidence in math. Outside the center, she loves golfing, traveling with her family, and spending time with friends. 

Hailey Patel

Hailey is a junior at Penn High School and aspires to enter the medical field. She participates in several school programs including Med Club, Key Club, Kingsman Tutoring, and Freshman Mentoring. 

Hailey enjoys helping students feel confident in their math skills and loves being part of their learning journey. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling, and watching movies. 

Elizabeth Gordeyeva

Elizabeth is a Junior at Penn High School who wants to pursue a career in the biomedical field. Outside of school she volunteers at the bioengineering department at Notre Dame. In her free time, Elizabeth enjoys travelling with her family, making jewelry and creating memories with friends.

Diya Lahane

Diya is a junior at Penn High School who hopes to pursue a career in the medical field. At Penn, Diya is involved in many extracurriculars, some of which include tennis, orchestra, HOSA, Key Club, and Red Cross. She enjoys helping others and supporting the community frequently, which she hopes to continue doing through Mathnasium! Outside of school, Diya enjoys playing tennis, practicing piano and violin, traveling, and reading.

Mehreen Buchh

Mehreen is a junior at Penn High School. Aside from Mathnasium, she is involved in clubs at school, including Kingsmen Court, Speech and Key Club. Mehreen hopes to be in the medical profession in the future. In her spare time, she enjoys baking, traveling and spending time with her friends.

Pete Newell

Pete is a graduate of Illinois State University with a BS in Mathematics. During college, he tutored Business math and Calculus in ISU's Math department. He moved to South Bend in 1984, where he worked as a Reliability/Test Engineer for Allied-Signal Aerospace. He later went to work for the Whirlpool Corporation as a Validation/Test Engineer until retiring in November 2020. While at Whirlpool, Pete volunteered as an instructor in the Engineering Explorers program, which introduced engineering topics to junior and high school students through hands-on projects. In his free time, Pete enjoys listening to music, playing guitar and astronomy.

Ranveer Verma

Veer is a sophomore at Penn High School who wishes to pursue a career in the medical field one day. At Penn, Veer is involved in many extracurriculars such as Model UN, DECA, Hosa, Debate, and Key Club. He enjoys volunteering and helping the community frequently, which he hopes to continue doing through Mathnasium. Outside of school Veer plays tennis, violin, and loves playing pickleball with friends.

Kaiyi Zhao

Kaiyi is a sophomore at Penn High School who has enjoyed math from a young age. Currently, he has a strong passion for business and computer science. At school, Kaiyi is involved in several extracurricular activities, including Speech and Debate, Deca, Hosa, and tennis. He enjoys spending time with his friends and playing pickleball in his free time.

Alice Zhang

Alice is an incoming sophomore at Penn High School. She has a strong passion for math and has participated in numerous math related extracurriculars, including MathCounts coaching and Math Academic Super Bowl. With these experiences, she is hoping to share the fascination math possesses at Mathnasium. Beyond school, Alice also enjoys playing piano and violin, crocheting, and hanging out with friends.

Joshua Seluzhitskiy

Joshua is a sophomore at Penn High School who aspires to one day work in the medical field. At school, Joshua is involved in numerous extracurriculars such as HOSA, DECA, Speech and Debate, and Swimming and Diving. He believes learning is the only thing the mind never exhausts, never fears, and never regrets. Outside of an academic setting he enjoys traveling and spending time with those closest to him.