Meet the Team at Mathnasium of Vaughan

Rebecca Smith

Rebecca is excited to join the Mathnasium family. She has spent the past several years working with children with autism, helping them integrate into community programs. She has a background in graphic design and fine arts, as well as many years working in sales and marketing. Rebecca brings a unique perspective to the Mathnasium team. Combining her many years of working with children with her years in the marketing world, makes her the perfect person to help promote the Mathnasium program.

Paul Onica

Paul is the Centre Director/Manager at Mathnasium Vaughan primarily, but also moves occasionally to the Thornhill centre. He has a B.A. in Liberal Studies with a concentration in Anthropology from California State University, Long Beach. Paul has previously worked extensively in Food Services as well as Retail Management, and enjoys all aspects of Daily Centre Operations. Mathnasium has been a welcome career change for Paul and he finds it extremely rewarding interacting with both students and parents! He is fully commited to helping to teach and mentor the kids in our centre. Their Math development and confidence growth is his main priority and he prides himself on ensuring a fun, safe, and enriching environment for all of our students! Paul is also the Social Media Director and runs the Vaughan social media accounts! He is a huge sports fan and enjoys watching sports, tv shows and also enjoys music....the 80's and 90's are his preferred eras! Finally, as our kids can attest, Paul likes shoes...a lot. He collects sneakers and is known for wearing a different pair every day!

Melissa

Melissa has worked with Mathnasium for over 7 years. She started when she was at York University working towards becoming a math high school teacher, and quickly realized the benefits to applying the Mathnasium methods in her own practice. Melissa graduated from both the Faculty of Education, B. Ed., Inter/Senior Mathematics & Social Science Concurrent program and the Faculty of Science, B.A., Spec. Hons. Mathematics for Education program in 2017, and now spends her days teaching as an Ontario Certified Teacher. Aside from teaching math Melissa loves playing sports, spending time with friends/family, and travelling when she can.

Daniela

Daniela is currently in her third year studying psychology at York University for her Bachelor of Arts. She hopes to one day become a child psychologist as she has always had a strong passion for working with children. Her love for math started at a young age and continues to grow every day as working with the students has made her love math even more. Being an instructor at Mathnasium has been the perfect job for her since she takes great pride in helping students grasp concepts and learn something new in math every time they come to the centre. Her top priority is not only to make sure the students understand the concepts but to put a smile on their faces every time they come in. She strongly enjoys the fun aspect of her job and is dedicated to helping students build their confidence in math. When she is not teaching at Mathnasium, or doing homework, she enjoys spending time and going out with friends and family.

Michael

Michael has been an instructor with Mathnasium since the fall of 2022. He graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Aerospace Engineering from Toronto Metropolitan University. Growing up, Michael discovered his passion for mathematics throughout his high school and university education. Michael's younger sister recognized his willingness and natural ability to help out others when she approached him for help on her math and physics homework, and encouraged him to pursue a career in teaching. He discovered that she was right, and has taken pride in helping students at all grade levels of Mathematics. Michael’s interpersonal skills enable him to connect with them which, in turn, maximizes their enjoyment of mathematics. Outside the classroom, Michael loves to spend his spare time refereeing soccer including at the highest amateur level as an accredited referee with Ontario Soccer. He is also a former competitive swimmer and runner, and continues to pursue these activities. Michael continues to advance his own skills and education and has recently completed the Data Science Certificate Program from the University of Waterloo.

Catherine

Catherine graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Honours degree in Psychology from York University. She is currently in her final year of Teacher’s College. She hopes to become a teacher one day as she has always wanted to work with children. Catherine strives to create a positive environment for all children to learn math and to build their confidence in math. In her spare time, she tutors children from different age groups, especially in math. Catherine also loves to travel, whenever she can. In her free time, she loves to spend time with her friends and family as well.

Karina

Karina is a high school student heading into her grade 12 year. She is passionate about math and has always loved helping others understand mathematical concepts and sharing her interest and passion for math. Karina thoroughly enjoys working with kids and providing any assistance they need when solving questions. In Karina’s free time, she likes hanging out with her friends and watching shows and movies!

Clare

Clare is currently entering her fourth year at McMaster University. Mathematics has been a passion of hers since the beginning of high school and she hopes to work in a finance-related field after school. She loves to help others learn and understand different concepts as math has always been fun for her and she hopes she can help others enjoy it as well. Clare loves the Mathnasium environment as it gives students a safe space to ask any questions they need answered, and allows them to build confidence in their math skills. When she's not teaching others math or working on her own math skills, Clare loves to read fiction novels, watching her favorite TV shows, and spending time with her friends.

Gianluca

Gianluca is a second year industrial engineering student at Toronto Metropolitan University pursuing a Bachelor’s of Engineering degree. He has excelled in math since his early high school years and is proficient in upper level calculus. He is passionate about teaching others the principles of math and ensuring a good understanding of core mathematical concepts. His favourite part about working at Mathnasium is the satisfaction of knowing that the skills he teaches his high school students are transferable to their higher education. In his free time, Gianluca enjoys playing baseball and running.

Alyssa

Alyssa is in her first year at York University studying psychology for her Bachelor of Arts. From a young age, Alyssa has always had a passion for working with children and she hopes to pursue a career that will allow her to do just that. At Mathnasium, Alyssa strives to create a positive environment for kids to be able to ask for help, develop math skills, and build their confidence. Alyssa has always thought of math as an important part of life and as an instructor she loves being able to help kids grasp this life skill in a fun environment. In her free time, Alyssa loves to travel and see all different places around the world. She also loves spending time with her family and friends.

Jessica

Jessica is currently in her grade 12 year of high school. She has always had a passion for doing math, and she always feels very accomplished helping her peers understand math concepts in a way that is easy to explain. Jessica enjoys working with peers and younger kids to provide assistance to help them understand questions and overcame any challenges they may encounter. In her free time, Jessica likes to listen to music, and hang out with her family and friends.

Georgia

Georgia is a first year student at York University, studying to receive a bachelor's degree in Psychology. She also devotes some of her time at York University to classes in mathematics. Georgia plans to combine her knowledge of psychology and mathematics to become an effective and engaging elementary or high school mathematics teacher. Her passion for mathematics began as a young child, as she admired the concept of simple counting, and expanded that into her current interest in calculus. Georgia has a strong urge to mentor other students and teach them that math is not always a scary and intimidating subject, but a fun and interesting one. Aside from her interest in teaching and mathematics, Georgia loves to listen to music, go out with her friends, and travel with her family.

Gianni

Gianni is a second year Global Geography student at York University. He has enjoyed learning mathematics and science throughout his education and has dedicated many hours within school to helping students understand math concepts. Gianni strives to assist students in building their confidence in math and developing problem solving skills that are transferable to everyday experiences and challenges. It is his goal to provide students with a friendly environment where students are encouraged to ask questions. In his spare time, Gianni enjoys biking and spending time outdoors with family and friends.

Matthew

Matthew is a grade 12 student who is planning on studying computer science in University next year. He has always loved math and spends lots of time helping his friends and peers understand key math concepts and skills. Matthew believes that Mathnasium is the perfect fit for him as he is passionate about teaching others and watching them grow academically. In his free time, Matthew enjoys hanging out with his friends, playing basketball and watching sports.