References
Ado J.
(current Spanish student),
May 2025
“ I love my lessons with Bundev! I've been trying to learn Spanish on my own for the past year or two, but it's hard to get all the grammatical concepts without someone there to explain them and give you productive feedback. Bundev has broken down some difficult ideas really well and he provides lots of lesson follow-up so I always have useful ways to practice what he teaches. He's been very honest and helpful in establishing what the biggest priorities are for basic communication and how things differ between Spanish-speaking countries. I find myself genuinely getting better at conversational abilities all the time. ”
Kat M.
(current Spanish student),
May 2025
“ I started Spanish lessons with Bundev recently after hearing about his great teaching skills. I took Spanish classes in middle school, but I don’t remember very much at all. Bundev did a really good job carefully assessing what I do and don’t know from the beginning, and he’s been great at answering questions no matter whether they’re really complex or really dumb. He knows which topics are probably going to be confusing and takes the right amount of time to go over them. I highly recommend him as an educator! ”
Bill Gordon
(CEO/my old boss, Yosemite Consulting),
February 2023
" Bundev came to our small advertising firm fresh out of college with a work ethic that needed no encouragement, a drive that was self powered, and a curiosity to learn the ins and outs of a particular industry and market vertical. In the first 6 months, we asked him to transfer from a business development role to a digital ad operations position. His willingness, and commitment to learn new skills in order to be a team player was outstanding. I will always thank Bundev for stepping into a breech and being the ideal team player. ​He is absolutely brilliant in internal settings, and, while his ad operations roles cut down the time he spent with clients directly, he would light up a room when put in front of one.
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His dedication to working on public health and political campaigns leads me to believe Bundev will shine in a mission driven organization — and the organization that he works with will shine when they hire Bundev and give him the runway to become an expert in his field. We always knew Bundev was destined for bigger and better things — and I am jealous of the company or organization that picks him up next.
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Bundev is a polymath, in the truest sense of the word. He keeps his social media account languages set in Italian or Portuguese — just for the passive immersion. He read books and trade rags on politics and advertising, just so he could contextualize the worn he was doing better. He would bridge the gap on his own when we failed to teach him something important. He made us better.
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He’s also a really funny person! Great sense of humor, and I bring this up because for almost two years, Bundev was asked to work alone (we are a remote company and he was solo in Chicago). Bringing that social energy and being able to connect with your coworkers across time and geography is not to be, in my humble opinion, under counted.
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So there it is: he’s brilliant, he’s eager to learn, he’s a good team player, he’s respectful and understands the language of constructive criticism, he’ll make your colleagues laugh and go the extra mile, and he’ll stay till the job is done. The work he did was complicated, technically challenging, and of high consequence. We would hire him again in a heartbeat and feel a twinge of jealousy for the lucky group that works with him next. "
“Bundev was my Spanish student in his junior and senior years of high school. He was one of only a few people in his grade who completed AP Spanish in his junior year, moving onto an advanced literature class the next year. He’s stayed in touch and come back to visit since then, and I’ve been so proud to see how he engages with his community and the world so naturally in his second language. He speaks Spanish with strong grammatical accuracy and fluency, and he's always been enthusiastic about trying to help people master complex concepts in the language. I know he has what it takes to share his knowledge effectively with anyone who wishes to learn!”
Iciar Niharra
(high school Spanish teacher),
March 2025
Nathaniel Van Wienen
(ESL instructor from previous work in refugee resettlement), April 2025
" I had the pleasure of working with Bundev at the Ethiopian Community Association of Chicago, a refugee resettlement agency that offers a wide range of social services to clients from across the globe. I serve as the lead ESL instructor, and many of my students also receive intensive case management through the program where Bundev worked.
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Bundev made outstanding contributions to our ESL instruction in several meaningful ways. His impressive multilingual abilities were especially helpful during the intake process with prospective students from Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia. His deep interest in language learning has also led him to develop a nuanced understanding of the complexities of his native English. Bundev occasionally stepped in as a substitute ESL instructor, often focusing on real-world language applications such as job readiness and healthcare communication. His keen awareness of ambiguous grammar and subtle cultural differences that can cause confusion has been invaluable—not only for clients but also for service providers, employers, and interpreters—helping to improve the clarity and effectiveness of communication.
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While Bundev is consistently committed to his responsibilities, he frequently goes above and beyond expectations by addressing persistent challenges on his own initiative. He has created written medical orientation materials in both French and Arabic, led multilingual info sessions on topics such as interview language and scam prevention, and worked directly with clients facing significant barriers to literacy. His proactive and thoughtful approach has lightened the workload for colleagues and significantly enhanced the support we provide to newly arrived community members. "