Our Team

Executive Director

Sarah comes from a multicultural and multilingual family. She spent her childhood in the West Indies and arrived in Toulouse, France at age 6. She was educated in France and obtained an LLM in International Law in 1986 and a Master of Philosophy in Political Science at the University of Toulouse. Her thesis in 1988 covered History, War, and Cinema. She also passed two National Certifications to Teach French (1992) and English (1993) at the High School and University levels.

Sarah moved to the US in 1995. She joined the Alliance in 2004 as a teacher, then in 2005 as Academic and Deputy Director, and finally in 2013 as Executive Director.

Sarah is a 1984 Young Poet Laureate of the Académie des Jeux Floraux. She has published poems in anthologies in France and in the US and was invited to submit a text for a book written by 100 authors, published in October 2017 in Beirut, Lebanon. She is currently preparing to publish her first poetry chapbook for Fall 2018 and is writing a series of short stories as well as her first novel.

She was a Founding Director of Word Fest, the Annual DC International Poetry Festival and sat on its Board from 2001 to 2006. Sarah was invited on the Diane Rehm Show in 2009 to speak about The Elegance of the Hedgehog, a literary phenomenon in France.

She was president of Washington Accueil Association, -an association dedicated to helping French and francophone expatriates coming to live in the Greater Washington area- from 1998 to 2000 and founded a book club in 1997, “Avid Readers in DC” to introduce American Literature to French expatriates, which she managed until 2014.

In January 2017, Sarah was made a Knight in the Order of the Academic Palms, the oldest non-military distinction of the French Republic. Presented by the French Ministry of Education, it recognizes those who have rendered eminent service to French education and have contributed actively to the prestige of French culture. Sarah was recognized specifically for her continuous efforts in the promotion of the French language and to her commitment to grow the Alliance Française D.C. as the premier French Cultural and Language Center in the Nation’s Capital.

director@francedc.org

Deputy and Academic Director

Originally from Iran, Ameneh learned the French language at the age of 3 in Belgium where her father was a diplomat. After doing a BA in French/Persian Translation and interpretation in Tehran, she obtained a Master 2 FLE (French as a Foreign Language) from the Université Stendhal in Grenoble, France. She moved back to Iran after her Master’s. She founded her own private language school and linguistic lab in Tehran and taught French at all levels. She also worked as a French Instructor and Administrator at the Service de Coopération et d’Action Culturelle (Cultural Services) of the French Embassy in Tehran. In 2004, she moved to DC and started work as a teacher at Alliance Francaise of Washington in September 2005 until November 2013. She also taught French at the World Bank from 2006 to 2016; she was an Adjunct Professor at George Washington University from 2010 to 2016 and has been adjunct Lecturer at Georgetown University since September 2015. She came back to AFDC in October 2016 as Deputy and Academic Director.

academic.director@francedc.org 

Youth Programs Manager

Born and raised in a cozy little village in Burgundy, France, Fanny has loved traveling for as long as she can remember. It was during her undergraduate studies in LLCER (Regional and Foreign Languages, Literatures and Civilizations) that she seized the opportunity to embark on an ERASMUS exchange program in Poland. This experience served as a turning point, making her realize that her future would be abroad.

During her Masters' in FLE (Teaching French as a Foreign Language), she was fortunate to work at the Alliance française in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania. Her time there was so enriching that she returned, this time to Zanzibar, taking on the role of Director of Studies. Fanny continued her passion for teaching to individuals of all ages and proficiency levels.

Afterwards, Fanny's journey led her to the United States, where she decided to make her new home in Virginia. Now settled there, she finds joy simply being outside with her furry friend, Sushi. She also loves exploring the great outdoors through hiking, indulging her taste buds with various culinary adventures, and satisfying her wanderlust by traveling whenever the opportunity arises.

children@francedc.org

Librarian 

Logan is a true Washingtonian; born and raised. She has degrees in comparative literature and French from Oberlin College, with a minor in history. Before joining the Alliance Française team, Logan taught French at both Barrie School and River School.

A lover of literature, Logan is looking forward to welcoming you at the library! If you would like to talk what's on your reading list, or just want to wish her a warm welcome, please stop by the Alliance!

library@francedc.org

Cultural Programs Coordinator

With northern Virginian roots, Kathryn has been calling the Washington, D.C. area home all her life. An intellectual at heart, she fell in love with the French language at an early age, pursuing her B.A. in International Studies, French, and History from Allegheny College, in the rolling green hills of Pennsylvania. During the COVID-19 Pandemic, she moved her sights overseas by taking virtual classes at Moscow International University, where she studied Russian Language, Culture and Area Studies. 

A participant of the Teaching Assistant Program in France (TAPIF), Kathryn was placed in the Académie de Bordeaux in 2022. In the small coastal town of Biscarrosse, she got familiar with the French language and culture. The following year, Kathryn moved across the country to Saint-Étienne, where she worked at a local nonprofit, continued teaching English at local schools and IUT de Saint-Étienne, and became a fan of the city’s well-loved soccer team. Through her colleagues in the Académie de Lyon, Kathryn got the opportunity to travel to Slovenia, where she briefly worked as an interpreter for French speaking students who traveled to the country to improve their conversational English.

After traveling through Europe and making a home on both coasts of France, Kathryn returned to the Bordeaux region and graduated in 2024 from the Université de Bordeaux with a Masters in International Education and Cultural Training. Dearly missing her family and the American way of life, Kathryn returned home to Washington, D.C. and began working for the Alliance Française in January 2025.

A seasoned traveler, Kathryn has voyaged to 20 countries across 4 continents and hopes to experience as much of the world as possible in her lifetime. She is eager to share her passion for La Francophonie, and all that highlights our beautiful and multicultural world. In her free time, Kathryn likes to cook, take pictures, be outdoors, watch films, learn new languages, listen to all kinds of music, and talk to everyone around her. She enjoys spending time with friends, family, and her family's dog Kali whenever possible. If you see Kathryn around the city, please say hello/bonjour!

culture@francedc.org

Executive Assistant to the Executive Director

Jessy Verger has an extensive experience in teaching French and Francophone culture to foreigners.

Jessy was born and raised in Normandy, France. After obtaining a B.A. in French Modern Literature, she received her B.A. in FLE (French as a Foreign Language) and later her Master 2 in FLE from the university of Rouen.

Jessy had her first experience teaching French as a foreign language to her foreign classmates to help them navigate the campus and later volunteered to the International Relations Office of her university.

While completing her Master, she taught French at the University of Witwatersrand, South Africa.  She continued teaching French language while exploring new places as she taught at Leeds University, United Kingdom.

She taught adults and diplomats from embassies and government agencies at the Alliance Française of Ottawa, Canada. She arrived in the United States in 2011 and worked both with children and adults at the Alliance Française of Washington DC. She also taught for 5 years at the Washington International School and for 2 years at the Yokosuka Middle School, Japan. She came back to the Alliance Francaise of Washington DC in October 2019 as a teacher and a Certifications Officer until Summer 2023 and joined back again in Fall 2025 as Part-Time Executive Assistant.

executive.assistant@francedc.org

Controller

Liz Nuti graduated from George Washington University with a BBA. She is the Founder and President of Accounting and Tax Solutions, Inc. She is an an EA (Enrolled Agent) and has years of experience as an IRS registered tax preparer. Liz's dog is a Bichon frisé whose name is Bisous (Kisses in French).

controller@francedc.org

Certifications & Private classes Coordinator

Sophie grew up in the United States to a French family and is bilingual in English and French. She moved to Washington, DC for her studies, where she earned her BA in International Affairs and European Studies at George Washington University, with minors in French and German languages and literatures.

She joined the Alliance Française in 2025 as the Education Administrative Assistant and now coordinates Certifications and Private Classes in the Education department.

coordinator@francedc.org / certifications@francedc.org

Education Admin Assistant

Noah grew up attending a French immersion school in Minnesota and traveled to France often during his early years. He attended Tufts University and majored in International Relations and Chinese, and received a graduate certificate in Chinese and American Studies from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. Noah has a strong background in immersion language teaching, having spent 10 summers in various roles at Concordia Language Villages with the Chinese, Italian, and French programs. He is delighted to be at AFDC and shake the rust off of his French with the amazing teachers and community members. When he isn't at AFDC, Noah enjoys a good cup of coffee, playing video games, ultimate frisbee, guitar and soccer. He works as Admin Assistant in the Education department.

alliance@francedc.org