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By Natalie Kornicks

The School of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures has appointed Zhanna Gerus-Vernola the Maya Brin Distinguished Lecturer in Russian starting fall 2013. In addition to teaching, she will organize all events and activities related to the new Maya Brin Residency Program, established through a generous $600,000 gift from University of Maryland Professor Emeritus of Mathematics Michael Brin. The residency program, named in memory of Brin’s mother, Maya, who taught Russian in the Russian program for nearly 10 years, is designed to bring leading Russian scholars, artists and cultural figures to campus for short-term stays between one week and one semester.

A lecturer in Russian at Maryland since 2006, Gerus-Vernola has been the primary beyond-the-classroom organizer for the Russian program and has been active in providing program enrichment through contacts in the community.

“Ms. Gerus-Vernola unites excellence in teaching and a range of administrative skills with a strong attachment to student engagement and a serious commitment both to the new Maya Brin Residency Program and to the Maryland Russian program,” said Elizabeth Papazian, an associate professor of Russian and film studies in the School of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures.

Gerus-Vernola holds a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in psychology from Moscow State University and a master’s degree in Russian language and linguistics from the University of Maryland. She has completed her Ph.D. coursework in second language acquisition and Russian at Bryn Mawr College.

Gerus-Vernola is active in the area of technology and learning, with a three-year stint as a consultant on Internet-based language modules for American Councils. This past year she received a New(er) Technology Grant from the University of Maryland Center for Teaching Excellence for intensive training during the summer, followed by monthly seminars throughout the academic year

Additional professional experience includes a three-year position as a program officer for the Future Leader Exchange Program (FLEX) at the American Councils for International Education; four years as a co-organizer of an annual international sports festival for handicapped athletes in Russia; and a year as a practicing psychologist in Moscow working with women from war-conflict zones.

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