Meet Our Team

Madhulina Roy

Center Director

Madhulina was born in India and moved to the Seattle area in 2016. She holds a Master’s degree in English (Linguistics and Literature) from the English & Foreign Language University of India, as well as a Substitute/Residency Teacher certificate from Washington State University. After completing her degree, Madhulina become interested in teaching as she found it very fulfilling. Her favorite part is interacting and connecting with students from a variety of backgrounds. When Madhulina isn’t at Sylvan of Bellevue, you’ll find her listening to music, reading, and spending time with her young child–building LEGO, reading innumerable story books, and biking together.

Sofiya Babenko

Teacher

Sofiya was born and raised in Ukraine. She earned her degree in Applied Mathematics and Computer Science from Georgia State University in Atlanta, graduating with a 4.0 GPA. Sofiya believes that math shouldn’t be scary, and that everyone has the capacity to excel. Her teaching philosophy is to simplify complicated concepts down to their fundamental parts and solve problems step by step. She enjoys seeing the excitement of a student who finally understands something they’ve been struggling with. Sofiya joined the Bellevue Sylvan as a Math tutor. In her free time, she enjoys researching artificial intelligence and machine learning, running, playing tennis and golf, and spending time on the water.

Sritama Bhattacharyya

Teacher

Sritama was born and raised in India, moving to the Puget Sound area in 2023. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Calcutta, her Master’s degree in English from Presidency University, and her Master’s of Philosophy in Women and Gender Studies from Jadavpur University. Sritama comes from a family of teachers, and she grew up observing and being inspired by the way they impacted the lives of people they taught. She enjoys being able to learn while teaching and teach while learning. Sritama joined the Bellevue Sylvan as a Reading and Writing tutor. In her free time she can often be found reading, cooking, and taking photos of anything that catches her eye.

Erin Biederman

Teacher

Erin was born in Ohio, and moved to the Puget Sound area in 1996. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in math, secondary education, from Western Washington University; she is currently pursuing her Master of Arts degree in Special Education. Erin first got into teaching because she likes working with children, Her favorite part of teaching is when students have the ‘aha!’ moment as a concept finally clicks with them. Erin joined the Renton Sylvan as a math tutor. When not teaching, she can be found reading, painting rocks, watching Seahawks games, volunteering, and traveling.

Sri Vidya Honnappa

Teacher

Sri Vidya was born in Bangalore, India, before moving to CA and then the Puget Sound region in 2017. She earned her degree from Ramaiah Institute of Technology in Bangalore, then worked at Lil Explorer’s Preschool in Milpitas, CA. Sri Vidya was inspired to teach because of her son and his friends. She loves the variety of teaching, and seeing how students think and apply what they are taught. Sri Vidya joined Sylvan of Bellevue as a Math and Reading tutor. In her free time, she enjoys DIY projects, cooking, watching movies, and playing chess, badminton, tennis, and board games.

Upasana Kukreja

Teacher

Upasana was born in New Delhi, India, and has lived in the Seattle area since 2017. She earned her Bachelor of Engineering degree from the University of Edinburgh, her Master of Science in Nanotechnology from University College in London, and her Certificate of Project Management from the University of Washington. Upasana has always been passionate about teaching. She like introducing new concepts and seeing students master them. She joined Sylvan of Bellevue as a Math tutor. In her free time, Upasana enjoys cooking, reading, and hiking.

Aaron Lee

Teacher

A native of Renton, Aaron earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Physics from Western Washington University and his Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Colorado – Boulder. During college, Aaron tutored math at the campus tutoring center. His favorite subject to tutor at Sylvan of Bellevue is upper-level math. He enjoys seeing the light go on when a student really ‘gets it’ for the first time. In his free time, Aaron enjoys reading, baseball, astronomy and singing.

Karen Lewan

Teacher

Karen was born and raised in Seattle. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Education from SPC and completed course levels 1 and 2 of Slingerland teaching for dyslexic students. When she was in junior high and high school, Karen babysat and worked with children, and discovered a desire to be a teacher. She loves the gratification she receives from seeing students learn new things. She joined Sylvan of Bellevue as a Reading and Math tutor. In her free time, Karen enjoys knitting, reading, walking her dog, sewing, baking, and visiting with friends.

Roman Lloyd-Muller

Teacher

Roman graduated from Western Washington University with a major in English and a minor in Psychology. Shortly after graduation, he went back to earn his teaching degree. Roman joined the Bellevue team as a Reading tutor. In his free time, he can be found watching movies, playing with his dog, and doing outdoor activities.

Renata Pertsovsky

Teacher

Renata was born in New York City, but was raised in Washington. She loves living in the PNW and experiencing the beauty and fresh air. She has extensive experience in early education, Montessori methods, and elementary education. She completed her eCDA in 2015. Renata has always loved teaching children, and especially likes the ‘Aha’ moment and seeing things from her students’ perspectives. She joined the Bellevue Sylvan as a Reading tutor. In her free time, Renata can be found writing, drawing, playing the guitar, cooking/baking, and spending time with her family.

Maribelle Samuel

Teacher

Maribelle was born in Yuba City, CA, and lived there until 2013, when she and her family moved to the Bellevue area. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies with a concentration in Child Development, and a minor in Spanish, from CSU Sacramento. While attending college, Maribelle volunteered at a local school tutoring 2nd graders in Reading, and was overjoyed to watch students progress in their reading journey; this led her to pursue teaching as a career. She joined the Bellevue Sylvan as a Reading tutor. In her free time, she enjoys reading, knitting, baking, gardening, and spending time with her husband and sons.