Senior Leadership Team

The following people contribute their work day by day to organise and implement the quality of education offered by ISB. If you have any questions, you are kindly welcome to contact any of them by phone +36 1 395 6543 or via e-mail at:

John HartPrincipal
I enjoyed fifteen years of successful headship of two 11 – 18 comprehensive schools in the UK. The last school had just over 2000 students, with a sixth form of 350. Following that, in 2008, looking for a change of direction I worked as a consultant on a National Arts project for the UK Government’s Department of Culture, Media and Sport. More importantly, between 2008 and 2014 I was employed in various capacities by Nord Anglia Education. Initially, I joined their International Inspection Team, looking at the quality of education offered in their schools worldwide. Following that I was appointed as an Educational Consultant, charged with evaluating the quality of their Senior Leadership teams in Eastern Europe, China and the Middle East. Following that, I was then asked, by Nord Anglia Education, to be Vice Principal of two of their schools in which I had previously worked as a consultant. Firstly, and extremely fortunately for me, the first school was the British International School Budapest where I worked for three happy years and secondly, in the British International School, Abu Dhabi for one year.
On my return from Abu Dhabi I became the founding Principal of Budapest British International Academy which opened in August 2015 in District 12, and subsequently moved to a new site in District 2 and which opened in August 2017.
I also act as a consultant for the Council of British International Schools (COBIS). In which capacity I am currently supporting the Development of a British International School in India. On a personal note I, I now view Budapest as my home city, having a house here, together with a Hungarian wife.
Contact: info@isb.hu
more about me
Szabó Violetta Operations Manager
Is a dynamic, result oriented manager with over 10 years of international experience who is delighted to be a part of the International School Budapest community. Fluent in Hungarian and English, Lotti also has Spanish language proficiency due to her family's time spent in Cuba on assignment with the Hungarian Embassy. Prior to her family's assignment in Cuba, Violetta acted in various roles at The British International School, Budapest as a member of the Senior Leadership Team responsible for the daily operations of the school. Upon returning from Cuba, Lotti established herself at the American International School Budapest as a member of the Admissions and Advancement team. As an international educational professional, Violetta brings her warmth and kindness, her problem-solving skills and work ethic, and her two daughters to International School Budapest.
Contact: violetta.szabo@isb.hu
more about me
Homolya Vera Vice Principal (Secondary School)
Vera is a graduated chemical and biological engineer, and she is also a teacher of biology and English Language and Literature. She has worked as a researcher and an ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) teacher assistant in the USA. In Hungary she taught biology and English language in a bilingual elementary school. She plays piano, guitar and likes to sing, take pictures and make video clips.
Contact: vera.homolya@isb.hu
more about me
Lisa Steiner Vice Principal (Primary School)
Lisa is an experienced English, and Art teacher. She taught art and journalism for 11 years in the USA and taught English in Hungary before joining us in 2008. She has a BFA in Studio art with a minor in English from Michigan State University as well as two master’s degrees: one for Humanities from Central Michigan University and one for Art Education from Kaposvar University. She discovered Hungary as a Peace Corps volunteer, serving as an English teacher at a school in Budafok. She enjoys spending time with her family, cooking, drawing, reading, and hiking. She looks forward to a great year with staff, students, and parents at ISB.
Contact:lisa.steiner@isb.hu
more about me
Schimert Gabriella Vice Principal (Bilingual Academic Program)
Since 2001 she is organizing the ISB bilingual program. After gaining her post-graduate and BA diploma in Hungarian and history, she spent some years with her family in the United States, where she worked, among other things, in school libraries and archives. After returning to her interest in the opportunities of bilingual education turned her into being enthusiastic about the school's work. In addition to her responsibilities in school management, she is also responsible for the library - she is happy to introduce the eternal and the latest favorites of children in Hungarian and English children's books in the framework of library work. In her free time, besides reading, she likes to sail, roam home and abroad with her husband and sons, and as an amateur musician she plays violin.
Contact: gabriella.schimert@isb.hu
more about me

Middle Leadership Team

Szobotka CsillaAdmission, Marketing
Csilla had supported the marketing work of schools for several years before she joined to the ISB team. Prior to that, she worked in the field of education as well. She had organized MBA courses of British universities in Hungary for more than 10 years. She spends her free time with her family; loves to travel and explore new countries.
Contact: csilla.szobotka@isb.hu
more about me
Ambrus Anita Finance, Payroll
Anita has been supporting the work of Financial Director since August 2014, working on financial and labor fields. She has a degree on Human Management. Earlier she worked at a media and business gifts company as an office manager. In her free time she likes to do sports. She is a dedicated pilates coach.
Contact: anita.ambrus@isb.hu
more about me
Lázók Dóra School Secretary
Our new secretary is Dóra Lázók. She has a degree at English and American Studies from Kodolányi János University of Applied Sciences. She likes to work with children especially with kids, therefore she has applied to us. In her free time she likes reading, travelling, learning new languages and playing with her dog.
Contact: dora.lazok@isb.hu
more about me

Administration staff

Szobotka CsillaAdmission, Marketing
Csilla had supported the marketing work of schools for several years before she joined to the ISB team. Prior to that, she worked in the field of education as well. She had organized MBA courses of British universities in Hungary for more than 10 years. She spends her free time with her family; loves to travel and explore new countries.
Contact: csilla.szobotka@isb.hu
more about me
Ambrus Anita Finance, Payroll
Anita has been supporting the work of Financial Director since August 2014, working on financial and labor fields. She has a degree on Human Management. Earlier she worked at a media and business gifts company as an office manager. In her free time she likes to do sports. She is a dedicated pilates coach.
Contact: anita.ambrus@isb.hu
more about me
Lázók Dóra School Secretary
Our new secretary is Dóra Lázók. She has a degree at English and American Studies from Kodolányi János University of Applied Sciences. She likes to work with children especially with kids, therefore she has applied to us. In her free time she likes reading, travelling, learning new languages and playing with her dog.
Contact: dora.lazok@isb.hu
more about me

Teachers

Alex Catton Homeroom Teacher Grade 6, Social Studies and Primary PR Teacher
Alex is from Ann Arbor, Michigan. He studied Environmental & Geographical Sciences and History at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. After graduating, he spent a year working as a park ranger for the U.S. Forest Service in Oregon, before moving to Prague to teach English. After two years of teaching in Prague, and a year in Vietnam, he went back to school. Alex gained a PGDE in Geography with a Professional specialisation in PE from the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, Scotland. Alex loves the outdoors, particularly biking and skiing. He enjoys football, lacrosse and ultimate frisbee. Alex loves to travel and is very excited about living in Budapest.
more about me
Almádi Andrea Music Teacher
Andrea graduated as a primary teacher and cathedral musician in 2000. Previously, she worked in School of Arts where she taught playing the recorder, piano and solfeggio. Also, she is a qualified Music teacher for all grades, choir conductor and Music theory teacher. In 2010, she earned her Master degree in Music education from the Eötvös Loránd University. For past 3 years, she lived in the United Kingdom working as a Teaching Assistant in a primary school across Key Stage 1 and 2. Andrea likes to spend most of her time playing with her 7-year-old son.
more about me
Almási Éva Physical Education Teacher (Middle School and Secondary School)
Éva graduated at Hungarian University of Physical Education as a PE teacher and a health physical teacher. Previously she lived and worked in England and worked in a summer sports camp in Maryland, in US. Éva has taught physical education since 2004 at ISB. She organizes the school sports programs as well. Mother of two sons, the elder has graduated in 2015 at ISB, the youngest is still studying here.
more about me
Bakró-Nagy Ági Math, Hungarian Language and Literature Teacher (Primary School)
Ágnes graduated from the Teacher Training College of Budapest. She has thirty years of professional experience. She has taught in elementary schools for many years. She joined ISB in 2014. She teaches math and Hungarian Language and Literature to the Grade 2, 3 and 4 of advanced bilingual classes. Her son is in Preparatory at ISB. Ágnes enjoys reading, travelling, sporting and walking with her golden retriever.
more about me
Beth Hunt Homeroom Teacher Grade 1B
Beth hails from California, USA. She has been teaching for many years both in the States and overseas. Beth holds a M.E.D in Special Education and taught in that field for 10 years in Seattle, WA. Beth lived for 2 years in Taichung, Taiwan teaching at Cornel Language School, Marrakech, Morocco for 1 year teaching at the American School of Marrakech, and moving to Budapest from Prague, Czech Republic where she has lived for 4 years. In her free time, Beth loves to travel, go to the movies, eat good food, and explore her adopted country. Beth and her two cats Puff and Peanut are looking forward to their next adventure in Budapest.
more about me
Brian Touhy Homeroom Teacher Grade 5A
Brian joined ISB in August 2015. He trained to be a Primary School teacher in Melbourne, Australia. He has over five years teaching experience in Australia, his native Ireland and most recently in London. He moved to Budapest this summer with his Hungarian partner and is enjoying discovering Budapest and all it has to offer. He is enjoying learning Hungarian and about Hungarian culture and history. In his spare time Brian likes to travel, play football and watch movies.
more about me
Cadence Ellington Homeroom Teacher Grade 1A
Cadence is from Santa Barbara, California, but has been living abroad the last 5 years. Cadence received a Post Graduate Diploma in Primary Education from the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow. Before completing her post grad, Cadence taught ESL in Prague and Vietnam for 3.5 years, specializing in Early Childhood Education. In her spare time, Cadence enjoys travelling, cooking, playing guitar and hiking.
more about me
Corinne Maurice
Corinne is an Australian primary school teacher with teaching experience in Australia, Africa, Fiji and Hungary. Her diverse teaching experience and skills allows her to plan innovative lessons that inspire children to be creative global citizens. Her favourite part of teaching is having engaging and interesting conversations with students about interesting topics. She loves her new home in Budapest and is learning to cook Hungarian food!
more about me
Dhanya Seshan Homeroom Teacher Grade 4A International and Advanced Bilingual
Dhanya will start her third year in ISB this September, having taught at the British International School and at the International House Language School before that. She is a Science graduate and loves to teach the subject. At the ISB she has taught in Grades 1, 2, 5 and 8. Ms. Dhanya is a Cambridge qualified English as a Second Language Teacher, and has experience teaching both children and adults. She also has a Post Graduate Teaching Certificate from the University of Sunderland. This is her eighth year in Hungary. She is here with her husband and two daughters. In her spare time, she loves to read, cook and travel.
more about me
Elena Fernandez Primary PE Teacher
Elena is from Pamplona, Spain. She graduated from the University of the Basque Country with a degree in Physical education and sports sciences and then obtained her masters in Secondary education and teaching. She has worked teaching and coaching different sports to primary school kids. She lived in Finland for 3 years, where she completed a master’s degree in biology of physical activity at the University of Jyväskylä and worked as a research assistant. Apart from sports, she loves cooking and traveling.
more about me
Ferenczy Marika Assistant in International Preparatory and Grade 1
Marika is from Transylvania. She’s been living in Hungary for 23 years. She has been working at ISB since its foundation, especially with prep and lower grade students. Marika loves woodwork, gardening and reading. Her woodcraft club is very popular both for boys and girls.
more about me
Garzó Márta International and Hungarian Science Teacher (Middle School)
Marta graduated as a primary school teacher with a Mathematics specialism in Zsámbék in 2002. She received her second degree a year later at Pázmány Péter Catholic University. For some years, she worked as a nursery nurse and a school teacher in UK, before having children. Now she lives in Budakeszi with her British husband and their three kids. She tends to spend her spare time in the company of her family and friends; she loves singing, walking and gardening.
more about me
Gyöngyösi Fanni After school Teacher
Fanni is currently studying International relations at Eötvös Loránd University. She has personal experience relating to bilingual schools because she left high school with a German graduation. She is specially interested in foreign languages and cultures. Thanks to her older brother and sister there are more children in her family, with whom she spends time regularly. Her hobbies are doing sport and dancing. In her free time Fanni likes to bake, travel and to play board games.
more about me
György-Farkasné Fejér KatalinAfter school Teacher
Katalin has a special education assistant degree, having several decades of practice. Working with young children permeates her whole life, as she has five adult children and nine grandchildren. In her free time she likes to read, to go to the theater and to hike.
more about me
Hilary Vigh Homeroom Teacher Grade 7, ELL Teacher (Grade 6 and 7)
Hilary is from US. She obtained her Middle Grades Education degree from the College of Charleston, South Carolina. In addition to being a teacher she has experience in Youth Development from her day as a camp counselor. She relates easily to this age group and puts time and effort into connecting and creating positive relationships with them. She moved to Budapest in 2013. She enjoys traveling, museums, sports, cultural expeditions, and the great outdoors.
more about me
Horváth Judit ELL, English MAth (Grade 1), Preparatory B English Science Teacher
Judit graduated as a Hungarian-English teacher at Szegedi Tudományegyetem in 2005. She has been teaching since then. After graduation she taught at Szeged, after moving to Budapest she got experiences in teaching adults and kindergarten children. She received a Montessori degree additionally to her teacher degree in 2013, which she has been applying efficiently.
more about me
Judith Hughes Homeroom Teacher Grade 5B
Judi Hughes graduated from University in Melbourne Australia obtaining a teaching degree. Her degree has enabled her to teach across the range of the National Curriculum in Australia and various International Schools. Part of her degree focused on English Language learning and Dual Language Immersion Teaching and Curriculum writing. She has extensive experience in classroom teaching from prep through to 10th grade. She also has experience in teaching Physical Education. She has two daughters and two amazing grandchildren and she is married to Istvan.
more about me
Juhász Ildikó Preparatory Bilingual
Ildiko, special needs teaching assistant, worked in elementary school and kindergarten with special abilities children. She spent several years abroad. She is working as an assistant of bilingual preparatory homeroom teacher at ISB. Ildiko loves travelling and visiting her father and her brothers in the US. She is a parent of one child. She enjoys gardening and cycling with her friends.
more about me
Karen Avila Homeroom Teacher International Preparatory
Avila, Karen is from San Diego, California where she obtained an International Baccalaureate focusing on genetics, a degree in Literatures in English and Teaching Credentials. Before moving to Hungary she taught primary and secondary schools in the U.S.A., Mexico, and Panama. Thanks to her passion for languages and cultures she is bilingual in English and Spanish, and speaks French, Indigenous Dialects – Ngäbere and Otomi, and is learning Hungarian. Outside teaching she enjoys dancing ballet, jazz, and tap as well as baking sweet Mexican breads.
more about me
Kass Eszter Art and Visual Art (Grade 2 - 6)
She has been teaching at ISB since 2004. She was born into an artist family. She has graduated from the Hungarian Academy of Applied Art as a textile designer, later she graduated as an art and visual culture teacher at the Moholy Nagy Art University, Budapest. She is member of the Hungarian Society of Fine and Applied Artists, and the National Association of the Hungarian Artists. She is presenting her art on numerous one man shows and collective exhibitions. She likes to read, to cook, to travel, to visit exhibitions. She has a grown up son, her husband is an interiour architect.
more about me
Kéray Dóra After school Teacher
I am from Transylvania, we moved to Hungary 10 years ago. I speak Hungarian and Romanian as first languages. I am studying at the Eötvös Lóránd Science University as an English-Russian teacher. I also help families who moved here recently to find a place to live, find school for their children and teach them Hungarian and English. In my free time I like to bake, travel, read and learn languages.
more about me
Kristen Stemp Spanish Language Teacher (Middle School and High School)
Kristen Stemp is a Spanish and English Language Acquisition teacher from the United States. She grew up skiing and adventuring in the Adirondack Park before attending university for her Bachelors and Masters degrees in New Hampshire, Spain, and Mexico. Kristen has spent the last ten years teaching Spanish in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. In her free time she loves to travel, read, and ski.
more about me
Kun Andrea Deputy Homeroom Teacher Grade 1B, Hungarian and Hungarian Math Teacher Grade 1
Andi graduated in Teacher Training College of Budapest. She has been working at our school since 2004 as a Homeroom teacher. After having one year off, she is the Art teacher of the Primary School in this schoolyear. Andi enjoys organizing drama plays for her class. She has two adult sons. Her hobby is music, playing harmonica and painting. She likes concerts, theater and travelling.
more about me
Leisztinger-Tóth Adrienn ELL, International Mathematics (Middle School and High School)
Adrienn has been teaching at ISB for more than 10 years. Besides ELL lessons she’s been teaching Science and Math. She obtained her BA degree in Primary Education from University of Glasgow, Scotland where she has been teaching for some time. For many years she organized and taught chess at ISB. She likes gardening, entertaining guests and travelling, she has been already visited 26 countries.
more about me
Luc Becquet After school Teacher
Luc is French, and he is a French language teacher and a piano teacher too. He has been in Hungary for one and a half year. He is working hard to learn the Hungarian language. He is willing to be one of the after school teachers at ISB.
more about me
Mark Noonan Homeroom Teacher Grade 8+ and 9, English Math
Mark Noonan is from Denver, United States and earned a BSc in Mathematics. He has been teaching internationally for 17 years in Turkey, Switzerland, France, Serbia and most recently the UAE. In addition to teaching mathematics from grades 6-12, he has been a Middle School Coordinator and the last six years an IB Diploma Coordinator. He enjoys cycling, alpine skiing and outdoor cafés.
more about me
Marsi Katalin Deputy Homeroom Teacher Grade 1A, Hungarian and Hungarian Math Teacher Grade 1
Kati graduated as a primary teacher in 2000. After her graduation she worked for a school in the second district in Budapest. In 2004 she moved to the United Kingdom and among other things, she worked as a a supply teacher assistant. She also worked as a Hungarian language teacher in London's Hungarian School. Spending 7 years in the UK, she moved back to Hungary and started to work for ISB in 2011. She was a class teacher for 5 years here. Since June 2016 she was on maternity leave with her daughter. Kati joined us again in the 2017/18 school year as a part time teacher. In her free time she likes running and ballroom dancing.
more about me
Melissa Brobst Homeroom Teacher Grade 2A
Melissa is a qualified elementary education teacher from Saint Louis, Missouri in the United States. She received her education degree from the University of Missouri- Columbia in 2012. Melissa has taught Grade 2 Homeroom for the past 4 years in Chiang Mai, Thailand. She also has experience teaching Physical Education. She believes in life-long learning and excited to learn about Hungarian history and culture. Melissa recently became a qualified SCUBA diver. She also enjoys being active, the outdoors, and exploring new places.
more about me
Németh Mónika Hungarian Language and Literature Teacher (Primary)
Monika graduated as a teacher in 1988. She has experiences in pullout education. She used to organise after school programmes. She teaches Hungarian language for children in advanced bilingual classes in primary school. She has two adult children.
more about me
Nicole Tomaschofsky Homeroom Teacher Grade 8, ELL Teacher (Middle School and High School)
Nicole was born and raised in Austria, not far from the city of Salzburg. After obtaining her teaching degree for the subjects of English and Biology, she moved to the West of Scotland where she ended up staying for 11 years, working in the IT industry and as an English teacher at a Scottish secondary school. Then she spent four years teaching Biology in a high school near Atlanta in the USA. After her return to Austria, she taught English and Biology in a middle school in Vienna and she also obtained her master’s degree in Teaching English from Mercy College, New York. Her favorite pastime is traveling and she also enjoy skiing, fishing and being outdoors.
more about me
Perger Ágnes Learning Development Therapist, Hungarian as a Foreign Language Teacher (Primary)
She graduated as a primary school teacher at Zsámbék Catholic University in 1997, then she got her English language teacher degree at Kodolányi János University in 2003. Now Ágnes is finishing her latest degree at ELTE as a learning development therapist. She has been teaching at ISB since 2002, and also has been a homeroom teacher for several classes. She has two children, with whom she loves to spend her spare time. She takes yoga classes and loves running.
more about me
Rath Edit Hungarian Mathematics
Edit Rath earned her MA in Mathematics at ELTE, Budapest, on top of her MSc in Electrical Engineering. She worked as an educator at California elementary and middle schools for 7 years, and as a high school math teacher in Budapest. She is married and has three grown sons. She believes that math is a supreme exercise for our brains, be it for earning a living, managing our life, or just relaxing with a good puzzle. Edit enjoys hiking, reading, singing, and listening to classical or folk music.
more about me
Rebekah Gliem Homeroom Teacher Grade 3A
Rebekah is joining the ISB team in the fall of 2017. She has an Indiana Teaching License which she used while teaching first and second grade students in Indiana for four years. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education, in addition to a minor in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages, from Grace College in 2013. Her passion is to share her love of learning with students of every age and culture. In her free time, Rebekah enjoys reading, visiting coffee shops and taking long walks with her husband.
more about me
Soussan Craymer English Math Teacher (Primary)
Soussan has been working for over 10 years at the ISB as an ELL support teacher. Before coming to Hungary she worked in a number of schools in London. She has three boys who completed their primary education at the ISB. She enjoys music and playing the piano.
more about me
Szilágyi Ágnes Homeroom Teacher Grade 4B Bilingual
Ágnes graduated in Teacher Training College of Budapest. She taught in several elementary schools before moving to US with her family. She actively took part in school volunteer work and gained experiences from the American teachers. She has been working at ISB more than 10 years.
more about me
Varga Tünde Homeroom Teacher Grade 2B Bilingual
Tünde joined ISB in 2008. She graduated in 1993 from Teacher Training College of Budapest. She taught in several schools both in the countryside and in Budapest. She has been playing music and singing since her high school years. Her hobbies, in addition to music, are literature and cooking. She has two teenage daughters.
more about me
Vályi ÉvaGrade 3B Bilingual Homeroom Teacher
Éva graduated from the Budapest Teacher Training College in 1993. She began her teaching practice at Óbuda, and as a homeroom teacher she became a social pedagogue because of her students’ social and learning problems. Later she studied and worked in England, and after that she gained a degree in English and Literature in Eger. Previously Éva was a homeroom teacher in lower school of the American Foundation School in Budapest. She loves contemporary literature, photography, baking and cooking, and running.
more about me
Tim Graf ELL (Primary) and Information Technology Teacher (Primary and Middle School)
Tim will begin his seventh year at ISB this September. Prior coming to ISB Tim had taught in Belgium, Sweden and Finland, as well as in the United States for many years. Together with his wife they have started a cattery, breeding Maine Coon cats. Tim is the Middle School Science, Math and Information Technology Teacher. He has held clubs in photography and videography, both passions of his. He assists in the operation of the ISB theatre, through sound and lighting design. Tim enjoys photography in his spare time. Combined with travel, he has documented the Middle Schools trip to Edinburgh last year as well a variety of his own holidays or weekends. He contributes videos and reviews to a gastronomy website regularly.
more about me
Kovács Dóra Hungarian Language and Literature, Hungarian History (Middle School)
Dóra studied Hungarian Literature and History at the Faculty of Arts at the University of Szeged. During this period she had the opportunity to spend a semester at the University of Malta due to Erasmus scholarship and she attended European-studies. In the last couple of years she has worked as a secondary school teacher, she taught Hungarian, History and Social Studies. In her free time she likes travelling, trekking, cycling, reading and going to the theatre and concerts. She is a volunteer in an alternative theatre festival in Szeged.
more about me

See what our students do next

Winter Break
12.22.2024 - 01.05.2025
 See more events

Check our latest activities

Winter Break
19/DECEMBER
Half day at school before the Winter Break
18/DECEMBER
Santa Claus at ISB
06/DECEMBER
 See more events