World-class Teaching: Introducing the ITA Liaisons

We’re pleased to introduce World-class Teaching, a new series of blog posts highlighting the work of International Teaching Assistants (ITAs) at Georgia Tech. Georgia Tech thrives on innovation, collaboration, and global perspectives; International Teaching Assistants play a vital role in all three of these elements, bringing academic expertise along with diverse experiences and cultural perspectives to the classroom. ITAs face unique challenges as well as they balance the demands of teaching and learning in a new country, often while navigating a new language.

To celebrate and elevate their work, World Class Teaching will highlight the experiences, leadership, and advice of Georgia Tech’s ITAs. Through this series, we’ll:

• Spotlight some of Georgia Tech’s incredible ITAs.
• Share their teaching journeys and the lessons they’ve learned.
• Offer insights and advice to faculty, staff, and students—straight from ITA perspectives.

We’re kicking off the series by introducing CTL’s 2024–2025 ITA Liaisons. Liaisons are international GTAs who serve as leaders within the ITA community. They work closely with CTL faculty to mentor fellow ITAs, advocate for their needs, and foster a sense of belonging across campus. From one-on-one teaching advice to community-building events, the Liaisons are at the heart of the ITA program.

Chang Ding

Ph.D. student in the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences

Ding’s research focuses on earthquakes and seismology. When she’s not studying or teaching, Ding enjoys reading and rock climbing. As an international student from China, she’s passionate about helping new ITAs adapt to their environment. “I was nervous my first time as a teaching assistant,” she noted. “But as a Liaison, I can help other new ITAs not feel the same way.” Her favorite parts about teaching? “Feeling like I can be helpful to others, and the opportunity to see how different students are thinking about the same questions.”

Kseniia Shilova

Ph.D. student in the Quantitative Biosciences Program

Shilova works in the Mathematical Neurosciences Lab at Tech and enjoys exploring neuroscience and machine learning. Her experience as a math teacher in Russia equipped her to be a successful TA, and she hopes to use her role as a Liaison to help other ITAs feel more confident in their roles. Her favorite part about teaching? Helping others thrive. “When my students were preparing for final exams, they asked a lot of questions and I explained a lot of topics to them. I felt like they could succeed on their exams because of me,” said Shilova.

Ehsan Asadollahi

Ph.D. student in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Asadollahi’s research explores innovative approaches to deception and artificial intelligence within robotics. He brings a multi-national approach to his teaching after completing his bachelor’s degree in Iran and his master’s degree in Germany. He decided to be an ITA Liaison because it gave him a platform to advocate for TAs and create a better work environment for them. “There are aspects of the workload and life for TAs that I can give feedback on and share my experience. It’s helpful for TAs in the ECE department,” said Asadollahi.

Ximena Pizarro-Bore

Ph.D. student in the School of Public Policy

Pizarro-Bore’s research focuses on innovative development for human resource management in public administration with a particular focus on telework and its effects on job attitudes. Her favorite part about teaching? “I’d say it’s connecting with students. Every time I have the opportunity to interact with students, I can see how much potential they have. Trying to learn from them and their different perspectives, seeing that there is hope in this world coming from the younger generation – that’s what I enjoy about teaching,” said Pizarro-Bore, who hails from Chile. As a CTL Graduate Teaching Fellow, Pizarro-Bore partners with CTL’s ITA Program Manager, Sarah Kegley, to elevate ITA voices at Tech.

Ianne Lauder

Ph.D. student in the Bioinformatics Program

Lauder, a Brazilian clinical geneticist, is passionate about her research in the fields of genetics, personalized medicine, and education. She loves sharing knowledge on all of these topics, making her the perfect fit for her TA role in Applied Physiology. Her favorite part about teaching? “The opportunity to engage with people from diverse cultural and academic backgrounds, which fosters the creation of valuable knowledge,” said Lauder. As a Liaison, she hopes to provide support to incoming ITAs as they navigate their new roles and responsibilities.

Yu (Oli) Wang

Master’s student in the College of Computer Science

Wang, a first-year Master’s student from China, studies perception and robotics. She brings previous experience as a TA at a prior university to her current role at Tech, where she assists multiple engineering design and computer science related classes. As Liaison, Wang hopes to build learning communities for other ITAs.

Stay tuned next week as the Liaisons return to share advice with faculty on how to best work with international teaching assistants and cultivate a welcoming, productive environment for all.

Together, let’s celebrate world-class teaching at Georgia Tech.

The World-class Teaching series highlights the work of International Teaching Assistants at Georgia Tech; it is written in collaboration with the Center for Teaching and Learning International Teaching Assistant Liaisons. The ITA Liaisons are graduate teaching assistants who also serve as ITA leaders, advocates, and mentors across campus. Interested in learning more? Read Part 2 and Part 3 of the series.