CONNECTING COMMUNITIES, HEARTS, AND MINDS
THROUGH MEANINGFUL INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL AND EXCHANGE
About Kathy
Kathy Tien 田薪凱 (she/her)
Kathy Tien is a member of the Board of Directors for the Communitea Project, as well as Director of Operations for its sponsor companies: Storied Journeys, The Village Teacher, and Communitea House.
Before joining the Communitea Project, Kathy worked for over a decade as an administrator at the prestigious Mandarin Training Center at National Taiwan Normal University. There, Kathy designed, coordinated and lead experiential education programs for students from around the globe. After moving to the United States, Kathy has worked for five years as a Mandarin Chinese educator at the Westside school in West Seattle, as well as the Chinese School of Bellevue.
Kathy received her BA in Mass Communication from Sheng-the College in Taipei, Taiwan and her MA in Design Strategy and Innovation from Brunel University in London, England. Her passion and love for art, design, education, and community connection continue to drive her work.
When Kathy isn’t teaching or working with the community, she enjoys spending time with her husband Sunny and their family in Beacon Hill and Issaquah.
About Jeremy
Jeremy Smith, 史哲謐 (he/him)
Jeremy, or 史老師 Shi Laoshi as his students call him, is the Founder and Executive Director of the Communitea Project and its sponsor companies: Storied Journeys, The Village Teacher, and Communitea House.
Before starting this venture, Jeremy has spent the last 15 years in traditional and experiential education, mentoring new teachers, in business development, and volunteering his time in service to non-profit work for communities in the United States and abroad. He is proud of the years he has spent teaching almost every age: Pre-school through University, in Special Education, English Language Learners, History, and Mandarin Chinese. He has also worked for the last six years collaborating, planning, and leading experiential education trips to the back and front countries of Washington, as well as to countries like Taiwan and China. Jeremy is very proud of his work connecting school communities through cultural exchanges between Seattle, Taipei, Taidong, Beijing, and Chengdu.
About Zain
Zain is a technology consultant and an avid fisherman and diver in the Seattle area. He is helping each program out with technical expertise.
Zain got his start as a sysadmin in the healthcare industry. He did a brief stint in Silicon Valley with a .com or two, and from there he became a health systems consultant. Lately he's been working for various state governments and their IT services vendors focusing on the MITA and CURES act initiatives signed and ordered by President Obama and his administration.
Contact Zain if you have an issue with website workflow.