About Us
Alma Mater is an educational studio in Lexington, MA offering creative after-school activities for children and youth. Our mission is to provide a visual arts education along with Russian and English language classes to the diverse community of Greater Boston.
Alma Mater Art Studio empowers children to take pride in their work. Students are instructed in painting, drawing, ceramics, illustration, graphic design and bookmaking. Our art program instills confidence in young students, encourages them to find their voice and helps them focus on a challenging task. By tapping into their creative potential, students develop a lifelong appreciation for the arts.
Our Russian studies program offers classes of all levels: from beginners to native speakers. We also have an intermediate level that teaches Russian as a second language. Our goals are fluent speech, reading and writing, the ability to competently read, understand and discuss literature in Russian. Our students regularly participate in and win competitions, festivals and Olympiads in Russian language and literature.
Our most popular class, Russian Day, is a specially designed full immersion program that includes a Russian language session and an art studio taught in Russian. Students are placed in small groups that match their age and language proficiency.
Our Staff
Kate Kerov
Founder & Director of Russian Studies and Drama Department
A co-founder of Alma Mater Studio, Kate oversees the development of the Russian studies curriculum at Alma Mater. Kate graduated from the St. Petersburg State Theatre Arts Academy. Kate also completed the "Teaching Russian as a Foreign Language" program at the Moscow State University. Kate heads the Youth Theatre at Alma Mater. She has 4 bilingual children and a Russian American cat.
Elena Gorodensky
Director of Fine Arts
Elena is an artist and a designer, with over twenty years of experience in art education. Elena has a combined BA/MA in painting and industrial design from Stroganov Academy of Art and Design in Moscow, Russia. Elena also has studied ceramics, sculpture and painting at Bennington Art College in North Bennington, Vermont. Elena has three children and three Sphynx cats.
Anna Izraitel
Russian Studies & Speech Improvement
Anna graduated from Hertzen Pedagogical University as a teacher for children with special needs. She has years of experience working with pre-school and elementary school children. Anna completed the "Teaching Russian as a Foreign Language" program at the Moscow State University. Anna has two children in college, a hedgehog and a kitten.
Galina Paquette
Russian Studies & English
Galina graduated from Pedagogical University of Yekaterinburg, Russia. She had also completed the program “Russian as a Second Language” at Moscow State University. She has been teaching languages for over ten years to children as well as adults. Recently Galina taught Russian at Brandeis University as a recipient of a Fulbright grant and is currently teaching Russian as a second language at Wellesley College. Galina worked as a translator at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. In her free time she enjoys spending time with her family cats, crocheting and painting.
Margarita Krylov
Fine Arts
Margarita holds a Bachelor of Sciences degree from Tufts University and a Bachelor of Arts from School of the Museum of Fine Arts. She has been teaching art to children and adults for over 8 years. Outside of the classroom Margarita concentrates on developing her own art style; she creates traditional and mixed media paintings as well as murals. Her works can be found in venues and on the streets of the Boston area and beyond.
Anya LeGault
Fine Arts
Anya holds a Bachelor Degree in Fashion Design from Moscow Technology University. She studied Textile Design at California Professional Fabric Design School and also took many art classes at City College of San Francisco. She is passionate about art, photography, food and travel. Anya has two sons and two cats.
Inna Moiseeva
Administrator
Inna has worked with the studio since 2014. She graduated from the Moscow Institute of Economics Statistics and Informatics. She has three bilingual children, two cats and one rabbit. In her spare time, she knits toys and loves needlework.
