Our Team

Avital is a mathematician, software engineer, and math educator with a lifelong passion for exploring and sharing the beauty of mathematics. After completing a master’s degree at age 19 with research in finite group theory, he went on to work as an early engineer at several start-ups. Now based in San Francisco, he works at OpenAI and is a member of The Global Math Circle's board of directors, where he also leads online discussions and supports technical infrastructure. He believes that small, collaborative groups can open the door for millions to experience the depth and creativity of mathematics.

Benjamin is an educator, writer, husband, and father of four who loves helping others think more deeply. Together with his wife, he has built a family culture of conversation, books, questions, and shared discovery. He is drawn to stories, games, arguments, puzzles and experiences that surface a bewildering idea that gives one pause. At The Global Math Circle, Benjamin brings a playful seriousness: he wants children to experience the joy of confusion giving way to clarity. Outside of teaching, he reads widely, pursues independent research, boxes, and clowns.

Dani begins with this belief: The best mathematicians are children. Their creativity and imagination leave them open to new approaches and the discovery of wonder! Based in Brasilia, Brazil, Dani teaches coding and math in elementary school. Her passion for mathematics, physics, and teaching led her to the Brazilian Math Circle. As a result, she not only leads circles in public schools, but also trains Brazilian teachers to lead math circles. While she plans to return to university to study mathematics, she still finds time to swim, solve mathematical puzzles, and practice jiu-jitsu.

Daniel is studying mathematics at Bard College. He has done research on the card game Quads, as well as on discrete geometry, and has been tutoring college-level math for several years. His other academic interests include physics and computer science. In his free time he enjoys playing music and singing, as well as running and biking. He has also been a competitive Rubik's Cube solver since he was in middle school.

Freya is an undergraduate at UC Irvine, majoring in Applied Physics and Mathematics. From an early age, she played with math at math festivals, stocked full of creative and collaborative math puzzles; at Math Circles with math games; and more. And for the last half-decade, she’s been involved in math enrichment as a math mentor, volunteer, tutor, and camp counselor. Hence, Freya’s been on both sides of mathematical puzzles: working through the challenge and guiding younger students towards the solution. She understands the great expansiveness of math outside of the traditional classroom and is excited to continue sharing joyful math at the Global Math Circle. Outside of physics and math, Freya enjoys sewing, reading, photography, and music.

Three loves define Jayasree's career: mathematics, teaching, and children. Her fascination with math began through columns on recreational math, sparking a passion that led her to a Master's in Mathematics from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. Over time, she realized that math wasn’t as intuitive or fun for everyone, which drove her to teach and share the joy she finds in the subject. This mission led her to pursue a PhD in Mathematics Education from Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education, TIFR, Mumbai. With years of experience as a teacher, content developer, and researcher, Jayasree is dedicated to making math engaging and accessible for all learners.

Nancy loves problem solving and building technical products. She sees math circles as a way to practice spotting patterns, testing hypotheses, and communicating complex ideas. She previously founded a 3D printing company that built customization software, which Amazon acquired. She then spent almost a decade in big tech launching several new initiatives, including a fashion brand where she used a ton of math to teach computers how to design clothes. She now builds products that help kids practice basic literacy and numeracy skills. She enjoys watercolor, Chopin, and designing fonts for niche ancient instruments. She has a degree in Cognitive Science from Yale.

Peter’s fascination with math began in college, where he used it to reveal patterns in economics and industrial engineering, turning confusion into clarity. Its precise, creative language has enchanted him ever since. After more than three decades applying math in all aspects of an aluminum foundry, from engineering to finance to sales, he spent fourteen years teaching high school: algebra, geometry, statistics.... He enjoyed connecting with students, learning their enthusiasms, and finding the right “If you like that, you’ll love this” moment for each of them. He believes in learning through collaboration and discovery—a spirit he brings to the Global Math Circle. Now retired from full-time work, he uses math to find a path through our frustrating, nonsensical world. He also loves getting lost in long novels, mapping mental trails as he hikes the woods, predicting plot twists while watching movies, and listening to music—searching for the next intriguing pattern.

Rishi is a board member for The Global Math Circle, and was instrumental in bringing our program into the 21st century. He has a degree in mathematics and computer science from the University of Texas at Austin, is the managing partner of SF Value Capital, founded in 2018, and is a software engineer at Google.

Steve’s lifelong dream is to share the joy of mathematical discovery with children, though the path to get there wasn’t linear. He earned his PhD in Computer Science from MIT and contributed to early supercomputing at Thinking Machines before advancing parallel computing research at Sun Microsystems. He then led research labs before pivoting to education, becoming the math curriculum developer and lead instructor at Einstein's Workshop, and later a volunteer facilitator and trainer at the Julia Robinson Mathematics Festival. Steve is passionate about teaching math through interactive games and puzzles, aiming to combine fun with learning while introducing abstract concepts to students.

Taylor is a graduate of Carleton College, where he received a B.A. in Mathematics, and has been leading math circles for over 5 years. He is a life-long lover of learning, and his interests range from language and religious studies to music and folk dance. He was lucky enough to have the math circle play a major role in his math learning as a young homeschooler, and he is delighted to have the chance to pass forward his excitement for the subject through math circles. He currently lives in the U.S., in Cambridge, MA.

Uri has always been fascinated by mathematical discovery and still vividly remembers the thrill and excitement of uncovering mathematical proofs during his younger years. Throughout his career, Uri has been focusing on using data analytics and building processes and tools to optimize and scale operations at companies such as McKinsey & Company, WeWork and Santa (a tech startup). Uri holds a B.A. in Economics and Psychology from Tel Aviv University and a Masters in Business Administration from New York University. In his free time Uri enjoys bouldering, snowboarding, solving brain teasers, DJing and composing music.

Vatsala distinctly remembers a moment in college when a confounding theorem suddenly made sense, and made her wish she could give the lines on that page a hug! She realised the deep joy that discovery and collaboration bring to the process of learning, and hopes to contribute towards many such moments for children at the Global Math Circle. With a B.A. in Mathematics from St. Stephen’s College, New Delhi, India, and a post-graduate degree in Management studies from the Indian School of Business in Hyderabad (India), she has over eight years of experience in diverse fields like media, education and interior and product design. She has two little girls and lives in Kolkata, India. When not with her family, she finds time to read, run and play Scrabble.