Our Mission
The mission of the Embry-Riddle Language Institute is to provide high-quality English language instruction that prepares speakers of other languages to enter and succeed in Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University or another U.S. university.
Our Resources
The Embry-Riddle Language Institute is a dynamic program located in beautiful Daytona Beach, FL, a wonderful, warm place to live:
- ERLI is an intensive, English for academic purposes program with an experienced core faculty, a strong social/cultural education program, and an academically strong curriculum, including aviation-related topics.
- ERLI faculty and administrative staff are very experienced and highly trained; all full-time faculty have master's degrees in TESOL or Linguistics.
- ERLI is an academic unit within International Programs and has access to the full range of university resources. ERLI students are Embry-Riddle students.
Our Faculty and Staff
Hannaliisa Savolainen, ERLI Director
Hannaliisa Savolainen earned her M.A. in Linguistics from Northeastern University in Chicago, Illinois. Prior to working as an administrator in international education, Hannaliisa taught ESL in Chicago, Santa Monica, and Flagstaff in both intensive English and credit programs. Her professional areas of interests include student support, faculty development, and reading research. Hannaliisa first arrived to the United States as a flight student, and she is a private pilot. In her free time, she enjoys exploring Florida with her family and reading murder mysteries.
Douglas Adams, Assistant Director
Douglas has an M.A. in Applied Linguistics with a specialization in TESL from the University of Florida and has taught English as a second language at the university level both in the U.S. and overseas for more than 25 years, and is currently on faculty at the Embry-Riddle Language Institute at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida. In addition to teaching at the institute, he has also served as an academic advisor for first year students at the university and taught Embry-Riddle's developmental English classes for international students for more than ten years.
Aliona Buresh, Senior Instructor
Aliona has her M.A. in Educational Leadership/Teaching English as a Second Language from University of Central Florida. She started her teaching career as a University EFL Professor at the Institute of Parliamentarism and Enterprise in Minsk, Belarus. She worked from 2012-2014 at Daytona State College teaching ESOL to students from various educational and cultural backgrounds. She started to work at ERLI as a TESL Instructor in 2013. In ERLI, she teaches academic English classes and Human Factors in Aviation. She is fluent in Russian and Italian. Aliona enjoys travelling, experiencing new foods and cultures, and meeting people from different countries.
Emily Franklin, Instructor
Emily earned an MA in TESOL from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. She started teaching English in 2008 while in graduate school and has continued to enjoy teaching English to speakers of other languages since then. She has taught in a variety of academic settings, which include universities in South Korea and Thailand, ESL credit courses at a community college in Ohio, and a university intensive English program in Alabama. Emily joined ERLI in 2021. During her down time, Emily enjoys running, relaxing at the beach, traveling, and listening to music.
Rachel Lee, Aviation English Specialist
Rachel completed her M.A. in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) through Southern Illinois University. Prior to that, she earned a B.S. in Aviation Management, and a Master of Public Administration (MPA) in Aviation, while also taking courses in Spanish and Mandarin Chinese. Rachel has over 20 years of work experience in aviation, including academic advisement, recruitment, and advising various student groups. More recently, she has taught ESL, EFL and aviation courses to students studying in the U.S. and abroad. In her spare time, Rachel enjoys glamping (camping in her RV) with her husband and dog, hiking, Disneybounding, traveling, reading, and crafting.
Andy Mattingly, Instructor
Andy has a Master of Arts in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) from Wright State University. While there they also earned a Bachelors in Arts in TESOL. They started teaching English in 2019 and have been teaching ESOL students ever since. They have experience teaching ESOL students in a variety of different settings, from university programs to community classes. Andy moved from Ohio to Florida and joined ERLI in 2022. Andy enjoys trying new recipes, reading horror novels and going to the beach.
Becky Westcott, Adjunct Faculty
Becky has a Master of Arts in Teaching from Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois and has been a high school French teacher since 2010. She taught for three years in the Illinois public school system before moving to Central Florida to get away from winter! She has been teaching in Volusia County for over ten years. Becky has taught English at the high school level in France and the United States in addition to teaching at ERLI several years ago. She is very happy to be back as an adjunct at ERLI again. When not at work she likes to run, try new restaurants, bake and spend time with family and friends.