About Us
 Ilija Katic, B.Sc, B.Ed., M.Sc
Mathematics Teacher, Southpointe Academy
Ilija Katic is a Master Teacher with over 20 years of
teaching and leadership experience. He was a founder and
a director of a mathematics and science oriented "magnet" school
in Bosnia that had an enrollment of over thousand students. For a
number of years he coached national teams of "mathletes", who have won
numerous regional, national, and even international competitions. In
those years Bosnia won a number of gold medals in several IMOs under
Ilija's guidance and preparation. He is the author of three mathematics
textbooks for secondary school, which are still widely in use today.
For a number of years he acted as a faculty associate at the University
of Sarajevo where he taught methods courses to preservice
secondary mathematics teachers. He also was the editor for mathematics
articles for the journal Svijetlost, a very popular journal with
articles about mathematics, physics and astronomy intended
for secondary school and university students, teachers at all
levels, as well as general public. He also acted as a Principal of
Dogwood School, and ran the school successfully for two
years. He is currently teaching senior mathematics at Southpointe Academy.
 Natasa Sirotic, B.Sc., B.Ed., M.Sc.
Mathematics Teacher, Southpointe Academy
Doctoral Candidate, Simon Fraser University
Natasa Sirotic was an engineer in Slovenia who became a
math teacher in order to fulfill her mission: "Give, and you feed for a
day. Teach, and you feed for a lifetime." In her classes high
expectations are blended with guidance and encouragement; Natasa
believes that finding a correct answer is just as important as having
fun in working on the problem. She is also a graduate student in the
mathematics education program at SFU, working on her Ph.D., and
teaching courses at UBC and SFU to preservice secondary mathematics
teachers.
 Edel Vo, B.Sc., B.Ed.
Mathematics Teacher, Collingwood School
With her leadership and expertise, Edel Vo empowers
students at Collingwood school to participate in various math events.
She launched the Math Club and the Peer Tutoring Program, as well
as organized a Math Appreciation Night for parents. She assisted in
preparing the school team for the MathCounts contest. A break-through
result for a first-time participating school, the team excelled and
made it into the provincial round. Edel wants to help many more
students to appreciate and understand mathematics.
Klaus Hoechsmann, Ph.D
Professor Emeritus, UBC
Education Facilitator, PIMS
Using the principles he teaches, "mathematics, like
singing, is for everyone – not only the three tenors", Klaus
Hoechsmann inspires teachers to love and understand mathematics. He is
a devoted scholar of mathematics who went from research mathematician
to a trainer of math teachers, to play-wright and public disseminator
of mathematics. He is co-founder of the elementary grades math contest
(ELMACON) and the author of the PIMS math-posters that were seen on
busses throughout the year 2000.
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