Staff Spotlight: Nina

Nina in her home country of Bulgaria, 2016

For all our supporters who cannot wait to hear what is next for our International Program, you can thank Nina for all these exciting developments! Nina is our International Program Manager and AmeriCorps VISTA Project Coordinator here in Columbus. She is originally from Sofia, Bulgaria and speaks fluent Bulgarian, English, and German as well as a little Czech.  

Nina feeding giraffes at the 45th Annual International Taste of Columbus

Since she was little, she’s always been interested in international travel. Her grandfather was an international driver, and he would always share stories about his travels and the people he met abroad. “His stories were all very interesting and exciting and I’d imagine travelling with him,” she says. This inquisitiveness would later translate to her being curious about the stories behind different historical sites. This eventually made her pursue a university degree in Political Science and International Relations. Her bachelor’s degree is from Sofia University in St. Kliment Ohridski, Bulgaria and her masters in European Union Studies at the Paris Lodron University of Salzburg, Austria.  

Nina’s love for international travel stayed with her through university and even landed her a job at Sofia International Airport where she would work with foreign professionals and meet people from all over the world. Then, she completed an exchange program in Austria and a professional internship in Germany which inspired her to pursue her master's degree abroad. Unexpectedly, she met her husband, who is originally from Ohio, in Austria while he was also completing an exchange program from Bowling Green State University. In 2014, she first visited the U.S. and continued to do so until 2018 when she applied for a contractual position through US Together’s International Program.  

While working with US Together, Nina has worked on countless projects from running the Annual International Taste of Columbus to developing a fundraising plan for the organization. Her favorite part about her job, however, is working with international professionals when they visit Columbus for professional exchange. She organizes different meetings for them where they learn about the U.S. and the local communities. “It’s always fun and new friendships are formed,” she says. Nina enjoys showing them what Columbus has to offer. 

One of the biggest projects Nina has been working on finally came out with some exciting news for the organization and it has the office buzzing. Stay tuned to find out what this astonishing development is!