GLC’s mission statement is to promote the teaching of Greek as a second language to young generations and to become a source of information for the Greek-language schools within our Metropolis.
The Greek language is one of the oldest and most essential contributors to today’s society, as it has paved the way to modern science, arts and medicine.
Promoting Greek arts is also a matter of importance. Supporting artists’ efforts that showcase Greek artists or themes is also part of our mission.
Our goals and objectives are twofold, promoting the teaching of Greek as a second language to young generations and becoming a source of information for the Greek-language schools within our Metropolis and to promote Greek arts.
We plan to achieve these goals by:
• Organizing teacher/administration seminars, for the continuous development of Greek language professionals.
• In our effort to strengthen and connect the Greek schools, we are generating/ updating the list of all active Greek schools under the Metropolis.
• Provide resources through our website to Greek schools and Greek language professionals for educational and for cultural topics. This will include information for traditions and customs as well as ready to execute Programs for National Greek Holidays such as OXI day, Christmas, 3 Hierarchs, March 25th etc.
• Supporting artistic efforts that showcase Greek art or theme and support the academic efforts of kids, thus enhancing their knowledge and appreciation for Greece, by organizing the competition and the celebration of the three Hierarchs.
Our Committee members are experts in their fields, come from many different parishes throughout our Metropolis
Katerina Iconomou
Katerina Iconomou is an adaptable and entrepreneurial Executive Director with 20+ years of experience in management roles leading the overall strategic and operational aspects of programs and projects. She holds a Master in Business Administration(MBA) and a Masters In Public Administration (MPA) She Demonstrated organizational skills and the ability to execute expansion plans with a strong creative sensibility and strategic thinking while ensuring sound financial practices.
Strong at identifying fundraising opportunities and recruiting volunteers. Rare ability to connect and collaborate with a wide range of stakeholders. Successful in public-facing roles and building and nurturing exceptionally dedicated volunteer teams.
Since 2010, she serves as the Volunteer Executive Director of our Greek Village, a Greek Immersion Summer Camp for kids ages 8-15 in California. She is responsible for the management, turnaround, growth, and financial stability of the organization’s program. As the program’s Executive Director, she represents the Greek Village externally, establishes and maintains strong alliances with key stakeholders, increases awareness of the organization’s work and strengthens its reputation. Develops and coordinates the execution of the immersion camp, recruits teachers/staff, and ensures ongoing team building. Executes a successful outreach program targeting the Greek/American community,
She has served on the HECC Board since 2010. Since 2019, she serves Pro Bono as the Chairwoman for GREEK LANGUAGE & CULTURE, a ministry of Metropolis of San Francisco. During the Covid Pandemic, she led the design and implementation of many webinars for Greek instructors on new technologies and how to teach Greek online, using various online teaching platforms. She developed and executed the marketing and communications plan, including website development, Social Media, public relations, and events. Administered budget and maintained accountability for reporting, reconciliations, and expenditures. Served as the point of contact between the Metropolis of San Francisco and the Greek/American community in the US.
On February 2019, Mrs. Iconomou was appointed by Archbishop Elpidoforos to serve in the Higher Council of Education of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.
Georgia Covell,B.A.-St. George, Downey -Cultural and Event Coordinator.
Georgia Covell holds a bachelor degree from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). She’s the owner of an event planning business with 30+ years of social and corporate event planning experience. Skilled in working under pressure and adapting to new situations and challenges to best enhance the organizational brand. Knowledgeable about the event planning industry with fantastic budgeting, training and operational management skills. Committed to running smooth and profitable businesses with focus on customer satisfaction.
She’s actively involved in her church community and has served in various leadership positions-Parish Council President, Events and Cultural Program Coordinator, Folk Dance President, Dance Director, Festival Chairperson. Currently she serves as a volunteer on several Metropolis of San Francisco ministries-Greek Village-schedule coordinator, counselor training, Greek Language and Culture-board member.
Dr. Elias Petros PHD-GLC Academic Advisor
Dr. Elias Petrou is a full time faculty member at the University of Illinois at Urbana, Champaign Literatures and Languages Library Department. Dr. Petrou has worked as a Research Associate Specialist at “Thesaurus Linguae Graecae” at the University of California – Irvine. His research focused on Late Byzantine History, Byzantine Literature, Greek Paleography, and extended to Digital Humanities. He received his Ph.D. in 2017 in Byzantine History and Literature after completing his B.A. in History and Archaeology at the University of Ioannina, Greece, and his M.A. at the University of London, Royal Holloway, in Late Antique and Byzantine Studies. Due to the nature of his research,he had the honor to work with various special collections and libraries such as the Vatican Apostolic Library, the National Library of St. Mark in Venice, the Austrian National Library, and other collections in the eastern Mediterranean (e.g., Iveron monastery on Mount Athos, etc.). At the end of his doctoral studies, he worked as a researcher at the Institute of Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies at the University of Vienna, Austria, and served as an archivist for the special collections of the Greek communities of Holy Trinity and Saint George in Vienna, Austria..
Since 2017, he has served as a Research Associate Specialist at the digital Project “Thesaurus Linguae Graecae” at the University of California, Irvine and he teaches at UCLA in the Department of Classics. In addition he teaches Modern Greek and Culture to youth and adults through various community organizations (e.g., St. Basil – San Juan Capistrano, St. Katherine – Redondo Beach), and has served as a member of the Education Council of Greek Language and Culture of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.
Anastassia Tzoytzoyrakos-GLC Academic Advisor
Anastassia is full-time faculty with the USC American Language Institute and Adjunct Anastassia Tzoytzoyrakos is a full-time faculty member with the American Language Institute at the University of Southern California and serves as an Assistant Professor with Rossier School of Education where she has been developing and teaching courses for the award-winning MAT-TESOL online program. Anastassia holds a M.A. in Applied Linguistics from Biola University and a B.A. in Economics from University of California, Irvine. Prior to her employment with USC, she served as ESL Program Director with Bethesda Christian University and BIOLA University (summer program). She has also worked with several publishers including Oxford University Press, Pearson Education, and Houghton-Mifflin developing ESL textbooks.
She is also the Director of St. Basil’s Greek School, in San Juan Capistrano. Because of her interest in classical education, she co-founded a youth theater that has been active for 10 years, and two K-12 private classical schools in CA.
Maria Polson, St. Katherine Redondo Beach-GLC Academic Advisor
Maria was born and raised in Nicosia, Cyprus. She moved to the US in 1994 to pursue a degree in the natural sciences and holds a B.S. in Biology from the University of Texas at Austin and a M.S. in Biology from California State University, Fullerton. In 2011 she started teaching Greek at St. Katherine Greek Language School in Redondo Beach, CA and in 2014 she took over the school as its Director. Aside from being the Director at her Greek school, she also teaches 3 classes, Greek with Music for Mommy and Me for children ages newborn to 3 years old, 2nd and 5th Grade. Currently, she is also a M.A. candidate in Teaching Greek as a Foreign/Second Language at the University of Nicosia.
Evi Miaouli-Public Relations
Evi Miaouli received her BA in Preschool Education from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. She was a Kindergarten teacher in Greece. In the U.S. she taught Greek at
St. Basil Greek School in San Juan Capistrano for 3 years and at Our Greek Village Immersion
Camp. She is currently pursuing her MBA degree.
