Meet
the Team

David is from England. He attended Cardiff in Wales and graduated with a degree in History, before moving back across the border to Gloucestershire in the UK. David spent many years working in retail, hospitality and journalism, before changing career and becoming a Primary Teacher. David gained his PGCE from UCL Institute of Education in central London.

David has always taught in Key Stage 1 and loves working with the newest learners. He moved to Bangkok, Thailand and worked for two years in a Thai/English dual-language school. The opportunity for cultural exchange is what motivates David, and he is glad to be in the beautiful city of Budapest to further this experience.

David is pleased to be back in Year 1, where his sense of humour tends to naturally lie, and he is excited to spend some time getting to know Hungary as well as possible.

BA, ELTE-BGGYK, Special Needs Educator and Therapist (Physical Disabilities)

BA, ELTE-BGGYK,Special Needs Educator and Therapist (Speech and Language Therapy)

Krisztina grew up in a village close to Debrecen. After finishing high school, she moved to Budapest, completing her university degree. During her last year at university, Krisztina worked at a foundation as a Special Needs Educator and Therapist for children with physical disabilities. She then had the opportunity to work in Luxembourg as a special needs educational assistant and learning support teacher for almost 4 years, later qualifying as a Special Needs Educational Teacher. After moving back to Hungary, Krisztina joined Britannica as she wanted to carry on being a teaching assistant again in a Primary school in an international environment. Her interests include reading, travelling, sport, watching movies, going to the theatre and music.

BA in International Hospitality Management and Travel Management, London Metropolitan University

PGCE, University of Greenwich

Vilma grew up in Budapest but after secondary school she decided to move to the United Kingdom. Having completed her Hospitality and Travel Management degree at London Metropolitan University, she also gained CELTA (Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults) qualification. She became more and more interested in education and broadened her experiences by working as a Teaching Assistant at Britannica. Her teaching career advanced in 2018 when she completed her PGCE teacher training at the University of Greenwich. Since then, Vilma has had a wide range of experiences as a primary class teacher both in London and here in Budapest.

Her interests include dancing, art, running, learning languages and exploring gluten-free restaurants wherever she goes. She also loves to travel to places where the average temperature doesn’t drop below 25 degrees.

She is eager to become part of the school community at Britannica International School again, and return to the place that inspired her to become a teacher.

Marianna was born and raised in the beautiful city of Athens, Greece. In 2017 she obtained her degree in Philology and Linguistics from the University of Athens, Greece and a diploma of piano performance from the music conservatory of Athens. In the summer of 2017, she travelled to Finland to start her joint MSc degree in Clinical Linguistics; she continued her studies in the Netherlands, and spent the second year of her MSc in Potsdam, Germany. In late August of 2019, she moved to charming Budapest to pursue her PhD. In her PhD, she developed a music intervention programme to support the reading ability of Hungarian children with dyslexia. Apart from conducting research, Marianna has taught various classes in both primary and secondary school, as well as at university level. Specifically, she has been a tutor of music for primary school students, as well as tutor for ‘Latin’ and ‘Ancient Greek’ for secondary school students, preparing them for the national entrance to university exams. Additionally, Marianna has taught in 3 secondary schools in Athens, Greece; there, she taught Greek Literature, History and modern Greek. Finally, she has given several lectures on topics, such as Language Development and Music Psychology and taught her own course for BA and MA students of Speech Therapy and Psychology respectively. When Marianna is not at Britannica, she is usually at home doing PhD work or goes out for walks; during her free time, she loves listening to music, watching fantasy movies (Harry Potter fan here!) or reading books. Marianna is excited to join the wonderful team of Britannica! As the teaching assistant for Year 2 Eagles, she will try her very best to attend to every child’s need and offer them the necessary support to grow within the school community.

After qualifying from the University of Winchester with a BA (Ed) in Primary Education (Specialism in Early Years) and QTS, Jessica taught in England and Wales for 6 years before starting her international teaching career. Successful years in Germany, Poland and Lithuania followed with the opportunity to lead subjects such as PE, Computing, History and English. She has taught across all year groups from Reception to Year 6 and is keen no matter the age of the children to make her classroom a safe, enriching and fun environment. Jessica is excited to explore Budapest now she is part of the Britannica team. She loves reading, history and visiting new places and is looking forward to trying all the delicious treats newly available to her here in Budapest!

Mou was born in a beautiful city in India. She is very energetic and has always smile on her face. Mou completed her BA and MA in the literature from a reputed university in India. She has always been enthusiastically involved in nurturing and guiding students to achieve their desired goals. She is aware of the multitude of cultures across the globe and residing in Europe close to 8 years, Mou is passionate about giving a high quality education to our students. She has a deep respect for all human beings, cultures and is very optimistic. Mou has a special interest in reading books, learning new things, cooking special dishes, and travelling. She will try her best with utmost dedication to attend to every child's needs and support them to thrive within our growing school community and beyond.

BA Information Management, Thames Valley University

PGCE, South Bank University

Ben grew up in Croydon in south London. He had a fantastic start to his teaching career in a lively and diverse part of London. He caught the international bug in 2006 at a big school in Kampala, Uganda; a city that still holds a big place in his heart. Since then he has worked in international schools in Vietnam, Egypt, Thailand and most recently a short hop away in Prague. During this time, Ben has been lucky enough to have worked with a wide range of children, parents, and teachers across all three primary key stages, as well as leading year groups and a range of topics and projects.

In the last year, Ben has started enjoying leisurely cycle rides around flat city parks but finds hills a lot trickier! He loves hiking everywhere, from urban landscapes to the Himalayas. He is looking forward to making lots of discoveries at Britannica, with some curious pupils as guides.

As a child, Anett was drawn to the pleasant sound of the English language and hoped she would speak fluent English one day too. After finishing her Master's degree in music education in Budapest, her dream started coming true when she won a one-year scholarship to Birmingham, UK. Later she started working as a primary school music teacher in London, and eventually gained nearly 10 years of teaching experience in the UK before moving back home. After returning to Hungary she became a CELTA teacher and started teaching English as an EAL teacher. Anett is excited about her new role as a Teaching Assistant at Britannica, assisting Mr Willoughby in Year 3 Dali with their daily tasks and sharing the joys of school life with the class. In her spare time, Anett likes music, nature, yoga and would like to learn Hungarian Folk dance.

Sophie grew up in a small village in the South East of England, and ever since she was young she has always had dreams of being a teacher. Sophie went to Roehampton University and had a lot of classroom experience within the diverse and bustling London. During this time, she experienced many different cultures, languages and people. This led to her wanting to see the many different people and cultures around the world. Sophie first started teaching back in her home town, where she taught at a school where thinking skills were at the forefront of their education. In 2022, Sophie got the opportunity to start her international teaching adventure, where she worked a year in the beautiful country of Albania. She enjoys travelling and her favourite city in the world happened to be Budapest! Sophie is excited to continue her international teaching journey in Budapest and at Britannica, it just seems the perfect fit!

Gabi was born in the East of Hungary. After she graduated from the University of Nyiregyhaza, she moved to the United Kingdom. She had been working for 23 years in a variety of Independent Institutions in the UK. She also studied at Henley College. For 13 years she worked at an Independent Senior Boys School in Buckinghamshire as a senior librarian, teaching assistant and reading coordinator. In 2012 she became a British citizen and she also had the pleasure to see the late Queen Elizabeth and the Royal family at Windsor Castle. She also spent 23 years of summers in Algeria, Sicily/Italy and different parts of Europe. In July 2023 she returned to Hungary and joined Britannica in August. Her interests include fitness, mainly body pump, box fit, hiking and exploring different cultures and languages. She would like to learn more about the Middle-East.

Nick was born and raised in a small village in the south of England. He speaks English, and a little bit of both Mandarin and Japanese. He has had a wide range of teaching experiences since leaving university in 2007, both in the UK and abroad: teaching across years 1-6 in mainstream British primary schools; supporting 16-25-year-olds with severe epilepsy and autism, in a special education FE College in the UK; providing cover supervision for English, Media, Drama and Film Studies at Key Stage 3; and teaching English language learners in every age-group from pre-school to pensioner, both in the UK and Japan.

He graduated from the University College of the Creative Arts with honours in Digital Screen Arts and has maintained his interest in technology and the arts through his teaching. He went on to gain his PGCE (Primary English Specialism) through the University of Brighton before teaching, co-ordinating MFL, and co-leading Year 6 at a large junior school in West Sussex.
Nick has recently been teaching in Suzhou, China. He joined a large British international school there as an infant school EAL Teacher and has spent the last two years as Head of EAL in the Junior School.

Nick enjoys the challenges that come with living in a different country. He is continues to be excited to learn about the city and the culture of Hungary through his passions: language learning, photography, running, and hiking.

Reni was born and raised in Pápa, Hungary. At the age of eighteen, she moved to the United States and lived in New York and Connecticut before moving back to Hungary with her family recently.

Reni is a lifelong learner; her educational background includes an associate’s degree in Liberal Arts/Social Sciences and a Teaching Assistant certificate from Westchester Community College, a bachelor’s degree in Psychology, a master’s degree in Sports Management, a TESOL certificate, and a Language Program Management certificate from Columbia University, a master’s degree in Applied Linguistics from Texas A&M University-Commerce and a master’s degree in Teaching Writing from Johns Hopkins University. She is currently pursuing her PhD in English with emphasis in Applied Linguistics at TAMUC.

Prior to moving to Budapest, Reni worked in higher education holding various positions. She also taught chess to children of all ages and abilities for over two decades. Reni is thrilled to be part of the Britannica community and is eager to help students succeed.

BA (Hons) in Primary Education with QTS, BGU Lincoln.

Nadine’s family is originally from the Derby area of England, but her father was in the Royal Air Force, so she has never actually lived there. They moved around her entire childhood and she mostly only remembers living in Scotland, Germany and Stamford in England, where her parents finally settled.

Nadine has two children of her own, who are now adults, and four step children. She loves all things furry (except spiders!!) and she has four small dogs, who travel the world with her.

Nadine went into teaching later in life and left a job to go back to university and gain her qualifications, while her children were in school. After teaching in England for several years, she chose to explore further afield and left the cold and wet of England behind for the sunny climate of Dubai. Here she worked for several years in a school that linked International School education with Arabic education, and worked alongside some great Arabic teachers. While in Dubai Nadine met and married her husband, an American who was there with work. This led her on further travels, as his company moved them across the world. First to Mozambique in East Africa and then to Houston in the United States of America. In each place Nadine taught at International Schools and her love for exploring new places and cultures only grew stronger. As you can imagine, she is very excited to be exploring once again, this time in Budapest, Hungary.

Csilla was born and raised in Budapest and graduated from the University of Szeged as a Teacher of Mathematics and Teacher of Music. As a family, with her husband and two daughters, they lived abroad for 17 years, where she taught at an American international school before recently moving home for family reasons. She is delighted to continue her work in an international environment. In her free time, Csilla sings in a choir, handicrafts, and hikes.

Michelle comes from the north of England. She graduated with a Bachelor of Education degree, specialising in Maths, and had a great start to her teaching career in Essex, England. After 8 years, she caught the international bug in 2004 after moving to a British school in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; a city that is still close to her heart. Since then, she has worked in international schools in Thailand, Germany, Dubai and most recently in China. During this time, Michelle has been lucky enough to have worked with a wide range of children, parents and teachers across the whole primary age range, as well as leading year groups, Key Stages and a variety of subjects.

The opportunity to experience different cultures and learning new languages is what motivates Michelle, and she is excited to be working in the beautiful city of Budapest to continue her experience.

Michelle is pleased to be working in Year 5 and leading the UKS2 team, where she enjoys being able to support the students as they transition into the secondary school. She is excited to spend some time getting to know Hungary and explore the wonderful opportunities it has to offer.

Dean was born and raised in Chester in the North West of England. Having originally studied Public Relations at university, Dean decided to pivot towards teaching after joining Camp America where he discovered that he loved working with children. He has taught in a variety of different contexts including London, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Bucharest and Quito. He has prepared students for a wide range of English language exams including Cambridge Exams and IELTS. Dean also completed Master’s modules on learner autonomy and teacher training and remains extremely interested in these areas.

Dean gained his PGCE in Primary Teaching with Distinction from the University of Nottingham. Following on from this, he spent several years working in London where he supported the many students who required EAL support to achieve their goals. He enjoys the variety of skillsets and experiences that children from different cultures bring to the classroom as he believes these can be used for the benefit of all children in the classroom.

Dean has visited Budapest several times over the last ten years, and though the language still evades him, he is very much looking forward to living in such a vibrant city, steeped in history and culture. Over the coming year Dean looks forward to teaching the Year 5 Titan class while improving his singing while working with our choir and his chess skills outside of school.

Aggie was born in the north of Africa, in Tunis but when she was 5 her family moved to the United States, where she lived for 6 years before moving to Hungary.

Aggie studied at ELTE and later completed her masters in Debrecen. She has been teaching for nearly 20 years in a variety of institutions. She also spent 10 summers in different parts of the UK teaching in summer schools.

She started working in Britannica in 2014 and, returning from maternity leave with her daughter Rebeka last year, she is looking forward to another exciting academic year ahead.

Hannah is from London, U.K but attended British schools in Dubai and Belgium as a child. She went to University in London, graduating with a degree In Geography before beginning her work in primary schools across London, initially as a Teaching Assistant. Hannah gained her PGCE in Primary Education from UCL Institute of Education before working as a Class Teacher in East London.

Hannah has worked in Years 3 and Year 4, as well as in Year 1, and is now keen to join our Year 5 team. In 2018, Hannah moved to China to work at a British International School in Beijing where she was based for 5 years before moving to Budapest in August 2023.

In her spare time Hannah likes to go on long walks, discover new cafes for a good cup of coffee, and watch Formula 1 – she is keen to go to the Hungaroring now that she lives here! Hannah is really excited to experience everything that Budapest and Hungary have to offer!