Lena Shaqareq
ESOL Instructor
Florida State College at Jacksonville
Lena Shaqareq is an experienced TESOL professional with over 15 years of practice in adult education and English language instruction. Born and raised in Qatar, she moved to the United States at age fifteen and has since dedicated her career to empowering non-native English speakers. She holds a Master’s Degree in Adult Education with a TESOL concentration and a Cross-Cultural Management certificate. Lena has extensive classroom experience teaching ESL courses at Florida State College at Jacksonville. She currently teaches TESOL undergraduate courses to teacher candidates in the College of Education at the University of North Florida and has coordinated ESOL programs at the university level. In addition to her teaching, Lena has served in leadership roles within TESOL organizations, including as President of Northeast Florida TESOL, and English for Occupational Settings (EOS) Representative at TESOL International. She has presented at numerous national and international conferences. She is the founder of LENa (Learn English Naturally) Institute, which provides specialized, industry-specific English courses for non-native professionals. Lena has also developed and managed English, Civics, and Citizenship programs for immigrants and refugees through Beyond90 and has served as a Virtual Educator for the U.S. Department of State’s English Language programs, serving institutes in countries such as Mauritania, Ethiopia, Tunisia, and Turkey. Lena’s work bridges classroom instruction, workforce preparation, and community empowerment, providing practical strategies to help learners thrive in professional and academic settings.
