School Staff
Thank you to our board members, teachers, and volunteers for providing a nurturing and inclusive environment for our students to learn, grow, and thrive.
School Board
Superintendent
Tatiana Kevork Carlson
Tatiana Kevork Carlson grew up in Los Angeles attending Holy Martyrs Ferrahian Armenian School where she took great pride in learning the Armenian Language, History and Religion. By profession she works in Biotechnology as an Associate Director of Clinical Compliance. Her area of expertise lies within the clinical space of oncology and rare disease. She and her husband Aaron Carlson have two beautiful children Troy and Amelia. She is excited to see the Armenian community of San Diego grow over the recent years and is dedicated to helping our young Armenian children succeed in learning more about their culture, language and faith.
​
Vice Superintendent
Seda Filenko
Seda Filenko is a systems engineer with over 15 years of experience in the tech industry. She was born in Yerevan, Armenia, and has lived in San Diego with her husband and two sons for the last 8 years. She is thrilled and thankful to be a part of such a vibrant and flourishing Armenian community and is looking forward to propagating and supporting Armenian cultural and educational excellence for the next generation.
​
Secretary
Maral Semerjian Sekayan
Maral Semerjian Sekayan is honored to serve as the Secretary of the St. Sarkis Armenian Sunday School Board. She is a mother of two boys and a pharmacist by profession. Raised in Los Angeles, Maral is deeply committed to preserving and celebrating her Armenian heritage. Now living in San Diego, she’s grateful for the strong Armenian community and the role the Church plays in her family’s life. Her older son is a proud Sunday School student who loves learning and making friends. In her free time, Maral enjoys outdoor activities, discovering new cuisines, and exploring new places with her family.
​
Treasurer
Siran (Sara) Hackney
Siran (Sara) Hackney is honored to fill the role of Treasurer for St. Sarkis Armenian Sunday School. Siran was born in Yerevan, Armenia and grew up in the vibrant Armenian community of Los Angeles, California. Siran is a corporate attorney by profession who has primarily worked in the Entertainment and Tech Industries. She and her husband Josh have an exuberant daughter named Lilith who attends St. Sarkis Armenian Sunday School where she continues to gain a fuller appreciation of her Armenian roots. Siran is eager to cultivate a fruitful and inspiring school year for our children and looks forward to seeing our community thrive.
​
Communications Advisor
Kristen Lipari
Kristen Lipari oversees communications and advises on programs at St. Sarkis Sunday School. A New York native, she grew up immersed in the Armenian community through Holy Martyrs Armenian Sunday School, AGBU Camp Nubar, and Boston University, where she led the Armenian Student Association. Kristen earned a doctorate in Counseling Psychology, focusing her dissertation on the cultural identity and intergenerational trauma of Armenian Genocide descendants. After moving to California, she joined the St. Sarkis Sunday School Board to help preserve Armenian culture, language, and faith by offering a meaningful educational experience for the next generation, including her two children, Graham and Alexandra. A licensed clinical psychologist, she provides telehealth services across California, manages the Sunday School website, and partners with parent volunteers on its social media accounts.
​
Parent Advisor
Gohar Gyurjyan
Gohar Gyurjyan is a Parent Advisor on the St. Sarkis Armenian Sunday School Board and teaches culture classes on occasion. She is the mother of two boys, who have been attending St. Sarkis since 2022. Last year, she taught classes about great Armenian historical figures such as Mesrop Mashtotz and Komitas. She was pleasantly surprised to see our students' growing interest and pride in their culture and heritage and hopes to continue to expand our children's knowledge about our culture this year. What was even more unexpected was that her own two boys looked forward to these classes. She is a clinical psychologist by profession and has worked in the field of child development for over 15 years. She feels that our children's sense of identity and belonging is crucial to their ultimate success as adults. When not working or volunteering at church, Gohar enjoys traveling, reading about Eurasian politics and spending time with her two boys and loving husband.
​
Our Teachers
Erik Barsegian
Erik Barsegian is a senior at UC San Diego, majoring in Psychology with a specialization in Social Psychology and minoring in Law and Society. With a strong interest in the intersection of psychology and law, he plans to attend law school and pursue a career that blends his academic background with his commitment to justice.
​
Originally from Fresno, CA, Erik has been active in the Armenian community for many years, attending Hye Camp and participating at St. Paul Armenian Church. Since moving to San Diego in 2024, he has continued his involvement at St. Sarkis Armenian Church, where he teaches conversational Armenian and Armenian culture to youth. He is also an active member of the Armenian Student Association at UCSD, helping promote cultural pride and community engagement.
​
Outside of academics and community work, Erik enjoys puzzles, painting, traveling, and spending time in nature and at the beach. He is passionate about sharing his Armenian heritage with students and helping them strengthen both their language skills and cultural identity.
Sarine Bidoyan
Sarine Bidoyan grew up in the Armenian community of Haifa, immersed in strong traditions of family, culture, and service. From a young age, she volunteered with children, nurturing a passion for supporting and guiding young people. Sarine studied in therapeutic fields, specializing in therapeutic horseback riding, and has worked with children with special needs, combining care, empathy, and the healing power of horses to foster growth and development.
​
Committed to giving back, Sarine continues to serve her community and is excited to join the St. Sarkis Armenian Sunday School, helping to teach and inspire the next generation in the Armenian community of San Diego.
Anahit Chobanyan
Anahit Chobanyan was born and raised in Yerevan Armenia where she gained valuable teaching experience as a high school teacher. Anahit worked as the lead financial expert in the State Revenue Committee of The Republic of Armenia.
She lives with her husband and two children (24 and 19) and enjoys spending her free time going to the beach and reading. She plays an active role in the Armenian community and is passionate about serving as a teacher at St. Sarkis.
​
Tamar Daugherty
Tamar Daugherty is a Captain in the United States Marine Corps, where she has served for six years as a Combat Engineer and military linguist. Born and raised in Glendale, she grew up speaking Western Armenian with her family and holds degrees in Creative Writing and Literature from Southern New Hampshire University and Harvard University.
​
Tamar has supported missions in Armenia as a translator and cultural advisor, helping to strengthen ties between Armenians and Americans. These experiences deepened her passion for preserving the Armenian language and culture. She is excited to be part of the St. Sarkis Sunday School community and looks forward to inspiring students to celebrate their heritage while growing in confidence and connection.
​
Lilit Ghochikyan
Lilit Ghochikyan is a dedicated professional with more than eight years of experience working for the FDA of Armenia. Born and raised in Yerevan, she moved to San Diego seven years ago with her husband, Karen, and together they are raising two daughters.
​
Since joining St. Sarkis Sunday School in 2022, Lilit has been deeply committed to fostering Armenian identity among students. She believes Armenia’s prosperity depends on the dedication of its people—a belief that fuels her passion for early education and for guiding children in their exploration of Armenian culture, language, and traditions.
​
For Lilit, Sunday School is not only about education but also about building a close-knit Armenian community through the friendships formed among children and families. Above all, she finds joy in working with kids and cherishes the excitement and smiles they bring.
Turvanda Hakobyan
Turvanda earned her Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy and Education from Yerevan State University. Born and raised in Yerevan, Armenia, she later moved to Canada, where she taught at an Armenian Saturday school and gained valuable classroom experience. Most recently, she and her family relocated from Toronto to San Diego, where she looks forward to becoming an active member of the Armenian community.
​
She and her husband are raising three children and are passionate about helping the next generation of Armenian youth strengthen their language and cultural identity. In her free time, Turvanda enjoys cooking, baking, crafting, knitting, exploring new places, and spending time outdoors.
Arpine Harutyunyan
Arpine Harutyunyan was born and raised in Armenia, where she studied Speech Therapy and Psychology at Yerevan State Pedagogical University. Before moving to San Diego, she worked for 10 years in a school district supporting children with special needs.
​
She is married and a proud mother of two. Arpine is excited to join the Armenian Sunday School and is grateful for the opportunity to be part of this community, helping teach children their mother language.
​
Lilit Naghdalyan
Lilit Naghdalyan grew up in Yerevan, Armenia. She graduated from Armenian State University of Economics with an honors diploma. Before moving to San Diego, she worked in KPMG as a senior auditor. She is an ACCA member and holds an international accounting and auditing license.
Lilit has been actively involved in Armenian Sunday School since 2017. Lilit is married and blessed with two wonderful kids who also attend Armenian Sunday School. Lilit enjoys teaching and is grateful to be part of wonderful Armenian community of San Diego.
​
Romina Zarian
Romina grew up in Iran’s Armenian community, where she also received her Armenian education. After completing high school, she immigrated abroad. Professionally, she works in healthcare, but she has a deep passion for teaching Armenian language and heritage to the next generation.
Together with her husband, Hratchia, she raised their daughter, Lucine, speaking primarily Armenian until she began preschool at age 3.5 and learned English. Romina joined the San Diego Armenian School two years ago, following the opening of the new church building, and she is enthusiastic about teaching and optimistic about the year ahead.
​
Volunteers
Thank you to our student volunteers from the UCSD and SDSU Armenian Students Associations who show up for our students each week, enhancing their learning experience and making Sunday School that much more fun! Thank you also to our devoted parent volunteers, Ilona Kerr and Susanna Sargsyan, who lead our social media and decorating efforts!
If you would like to volunteer, we would love to hear from you.