MEET THE MANAGEMENT TEAM
GABRIELLE DURANA
Gabrielle is the one who in 2008 had the idea of creating this organization that would later develop into what EFBA is today.
She founded the organization in April 2009, as most of you might already know. What you probably don’t know is that as EFBA started growing and requiring full-time employees, Gabrielle selected and hired a team of professionals while she herself remained with the organization as a volunteer. In fact, she hired over 60 employees before officially becoming an EFBA employee (she was EFBA employee number 65!).
In 2016, she was knighted by the French government for her work in favor of the French language and its cultures. Currently, Gabrielle is the Executive Director at EFBA, and she shares the dream of giving a multilingual education to all children in the Bay Area (and across the world), with all interested parties.
Gabrielle’s entrepreneurial spirit is pushing EFBA to not just ideate, but take action, as well as tackle historic problems using new solutions. Under her leadership, EFBA is inciting significant changes, driven by our founders’ desire to see results and social change.
BIANCA MONACO
Bianca is passionate about languages, professional development, and community building. With nearly 15 years of professional experience in the language education field, she seeks to leverage leadership excellence, while working collaboratively with the team in delivering EFBA’s mission.
Bianca’s interest in this field started in 2001, when she completed an ESL extension program at UC Berkeley, which led her to begin her career in the Language Education field in 2003. Initially as a tutor, then teacher, head teacher, and later Academic Coordinator and Manager. In 2011, upon joining International Language Schools of Canada (ILSC), Bianca started moving towards the areas of operations and visa compliance, and later acted as Student Services Manager, school Director, Director of Operations, and now COO. Bianca likes to spend her free time working on personal projects as a digital artist, and giving back to the community, by volunteering with different educational organizations. As EFBA’s Director of Operation, Bianca designs and implements business strategies, information technology and computer systems that support EFBA goals; in addition to providing the team with the tools and support needed to achieve our mission.
JEANNIE BUSO
Jeannie is an academic and administration specialist with proven leadership and management experience in international education, focusing on language programs, pathway programs and accreditation. She has served as a curriculum specialist for ACCET, done consulting work for the Center of Applied Linguistics, and been a regular presenter at EnglishUSA professional conferences. Jeannie is a CELTA-certified ESL instructor and holds a degree from McGill University in International Development and Linguistics.
Julia Peillon
Cultural Program Director
Julia lives in Nice, in the South of France, where she was born. At the age of 18, she developed a passion for traveling (Australia, China, United States…) and languages. Her educational background is a three-year Bachelor’s degree in Foreign Languages, and a two-year Master degree in Translation (French, English and Chinese).
In parallel, she has been working as a Camp Counselor and Camp Director for more than 10 years in day and overnight camps (in France, China and the United States). In 2018, she joined EFBA as a Lead Camp Counselor in our Mountain View camp, then in 2019 in our Belmont camp. In October 2019, she started working as our Camps Program Director, then as our Cultural Program Director in 2020!
Julia is inspired in her work by positive pedagogy and great pedagogues such as Freinet, Decroly, Fröbel and Montessori.
ANDREW CLIVER
Junior IT Administrator
Andrew is a up-incoming Tech Support Specialist from Georgia who has a passion for technology that is almost as big as his passion for helping others. He seeks to use his work at EFBA as a way to hone his IT and communication skills while being able to make a difference for children who want to better themselves through education. Although volunteering remotely, Andrew hopes be to be there to support teachers and students whenever they need it.
Lia Warnke
Lia is a Bay Area native passionate about cultural exchange and global connections. She holds a B.A. in Communication and Public Affairs, with a minor in International Relations, from California State University, Chico. After studying abroad in Europe, Lia became dedicated to promoting educational opportunities and multilingualism. She is excited to be part of the EFBA team, focusing on fostering inclusivity and meaningful connections. In her free time, Lia loves being outdoors, sewing, and spending time with loved ones.
Annie Nguyen-Bárány
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry once wrote: “Building a ship is not about weaving sails, forging nails, reading the stars; it is to teach people to long for the sea…” Annie believes in the EFBA mission and that our first duty is to nurture a love of the French language to children, a longing to discover and join the rich tapestry of the Francophone world– the road to mastery and fluency will follow. A native of the Bay Area, she spent several years living and working in Europe, moving through different linguistic circles. She and her husband are raising their four children to develop a sense of belonging at the intersection of four heritage languages and cultures.
Nina Bedet
Volunteer Translator
Nina was born in France. Raised in a monolingual but open-minded house, she was exposed to other languages and cultures through family and school trips. She holds a Master’s degree in Translation and Intercultural Studies. She has also taught both English and French during after-school classes or as a language trainer for adults. Learning languages has opened a world of possibilities for her and she wishes to help more people to do the same. She joined EFBA in September 2021 as a Volunteer Translator.
Carolin Tabet
Community Coordinator
Originally from Lebanon, Caroline relocated to California in 2012. She holds a Master’s degree in Psychology as well as in Human Resource Management. She worked in Administration and Human Resource Management for several years. Caroline is fluent in French (and Arabic) and is happy to contribute to EFBA’s valuable mission of spreading French education among children living in the Bay Area. She enjoys travelling and spends most of her free time with her children.
Adèle Hilands
Translator French to English (Volunteer)
Adèle is originally from France but her passion for languages and cultures led her to leave her native country at nineteen years old. She moved to both Spain and the United States, where she currently resides. She is a Ph.D. candidate in French Studies at Tulane University (New Orleans, LA) and is fluent in French, English, Spanish and Italian. Adèle worked as a French teacher for several years, and hopes to continue doing so after she graduates. She has also worked on various translation projects over time, and is excited to help further EFBA’s mission. During her free time, Adèle enjoys reading, cooking, and spending time in the outdoors.
Laurence Champomier
Laurence Champomier grew up with a strong interest in foreign languages and cultures. After studying German Literature and Civilization at the University Blaise Pascal in Clermont Ferrand, she began her career in education teaching German, French and visual arts in middle school. In 1997, she redirected to primary education and joined the Teaching Institute of Seine et Marne (east of Paris), got her teaching licence and taught students from Kindergarten to 5th grade. In 2004, following a collaborative project between the Académie de Créteil and the bilingual schools of the Bay Area, Laurence accepted a job offer from the French American International School of San Francisco, where she worked for 12 years teaching 1st and 2nd grade. Conjointly in 2010, she became cycle coordinator with a focus on the horizontal coherence between the subjects taught in French and the ones taught English as well as the building of strong bridges between grade levels. In 2016, she decided to explore the American public education system and accepted a position as Director of French immersion program in one of the first French immersion public schools in the Bay Area. She has worked at the Francophone Charter school of Oakland for 6 years as Principal of the lower grades (TK-2) when the school split into two campuses in 2020. Specialist in multilingual education, she will oversee the DELF Prim and DELF Junior for our students at EFBA.
Zach Sebree
Zach was born in Salem, OR and is currently a Junior studying French and Global History at Michigan State University. Having been unwittingly forced into French during high school, he soon took a liking to the language and ultimately decided to pursue it. Zach is currently aspiring to studying translation and interpreting at graduate school, provided he survives another couple Michigan winters. He joined EFBA as a French-to-English Translator in December 2022 in hopes of helping others discover the wonder of foreign languages without relying on Google Translate.
James Tostado
James is an aspiring analyst with a passion for using data insights to improve operations. Being a native to the bay area, he brings his educational background in computer science, along with his professional experience in sales, finance, and education to EFBA. Understanding the impact of a well-rounded education, James is looking to work alongside the other members of the EFBA staff to create an educational experience that fosters a continued aptitude for academic achievement.
Travis Nguyen
Travis is a California-based Software Engineer with a passion for crafting intuitive web applications and giving back to the community through impactful projects. Travis is excited to contribute to EFBA’s mission by leveraging his technical expertise.
In his free time, Travis enjoys exploring creative outlets such as reading, baking, and ceramics. As a volunteer Web Developer at EFBA, Travis looks forward to building solutions that support multilingual education and foster meaningful connections.
Celeste Safie
Celeste is originally from El Salvador, where her experiences inspired her passion for communication and cultural exchange. Her journey brought her to the United States to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in Communication Studies, which she recently earned from San Francisco State University. Celeste has a strong interest in fostering connections through language and education, having seen firsthand the opportunities that bilingualism can create.
With experience in social media coordination and marketing, she is excited to contribute her skills to EFBA’s mission of promoting bilingual education. In her free time, Celeste enjoys exploring new places, hiking, and relaxing outdoors with a good book.
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