Keiko Roy-Carey joined the Partnerships team at Polygence in October 2023. She wholeheartedly believes in Polygence's mission to guide students on a journey of self-discovery as they take charge of their own learning. Her personal journey:
During my time at Appalachian State University, I volunteered as a mentor for international students to help ease their transition while studying abroad in the U.S. I made friends with students from all over the world and ended up studying abroad in the UK. For me, university was as much of an academic awakening as it was an enlightenment to the boundless ocean of knowledge yet to be discovered.
After graduating with a Bachelors in International and Comparative Politics, I decided to move to Prague the following September to attend an intensive program to earn a TESOL (teaching English as a second language) certification. Shortly after earning my certification and gaining live-instruction experience, I moved to Seoul, South Korea to begin my career post-university.
One year turned into five years in Korea, two of which I spent developing the K-12 curriculum for a private English academy and serving as head teacher. I moved on from the academy to establish my own private teaching business where my clients ranged from K-12 students, to retirees and business executives. This eclectic teaching experience allowed me to explore various pedagogical approaches, while also immersing myself into a culture completely foreign from my own.
I returned to the U.S. in 2019 and transitioned into the higher education technology space. Pulling from my curriculum development and teaching experience, I landed roles ranging from career coaching to sales and business strategy.
After three years in higher education, I am thrilled to return to what feels like home at Polygence, helping young learners explore passion projects and gain real- world research and showcasing experience. Like learning, the journey of building a career is rarely linear. But as Oliver Wendell Holmes said, “A mind stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions.”
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