Tutor Profile

Gina specializes in academic tutoring for English, history, and creative writing. She also enjoys mentoring students who are working on independent projects.

Born in Moscow, Gina lived in Ireland for a few years before her parents relocated to the U.S. to work for Microsoft. She grew up in Washington state speaking Russian at home and participating in STEM extracurriculars, all while developing her interest in literature and painting. Inspired by her dad’s piano playing, she also learned flute and saxophone and was lead flute and alto player in her school band.

At Columbia University, Gina was awarded the Brownstein Prize for Creative Writing and earned her B.A. in English Literature. She also edited an undergraduate literary magazine, 4×4, and lived in Writer’s House, a special interest community at the college. She studied abroad at Oxford as part of the Columbia Oxbridge Scholars Program and holds an M.A. in Medieval Studies from the University of St Andrews. She currently lives in London.

Gina started tutoring in 2020, working with Russian-speaking families to supplement school learning during the switch to online classes. She loves working on creative projects that help students find their unique voices and invents writing exercises that encourage them to experiment with form. She takes a hands-on approach to teaching the fundamentals and searches for supplementary reading across genres and time periods to help students discover a wider range of texts and develop their personal tastes. She aims to push the boundaries of what students like so they can gain a greater appreciation for world literature. She also aims to develop their appreciation for the craft of writing by closely analyzing individual texts.

As a history teacher, Gina focuses on helping students develop independent research skills. She helps students interpret primary source material and develop their intuitions for hunting down additional sources — skills fundamental to studying history past the high school level.

Gina likes to have fun, keep it conversational, and let students speak for themselves and gain confidence expressing their ideas to others.