Chairperson

Arina was born and raised in Houston, TX. She attended the local Armenian Saturday school as a child and later taught the school’s preschool class. She participated in AGBU’s New York Internship Program in the summer of 2004 with an internship with AXA financial.

In 2005, Arina graduated summa cum laude from the University of Houston with a BBA in Finance. She began her career as an underwriter for JPMorgan’s Houston Middle Market Group then moved to Chicago in August 2007 to take an associate position under Chase Capital Corporation.

Vice Chair

Yuliya Dosova joined the YP Committee in October 2009. Originally from Azerbaijan, Yuliya relocated to Chicago in 2008 from East Lansing, Michigan where she resided with her family for 12 years. She holds a B.A. from Michigan State University and works as a Human Resources professional in Chicago. She gives back to the city she loves by organizing career workshops to assist local refugees with finding jobs. In her free time, Yuliya enjoys roadtrips, poetry and Chicago's cultural life.

Secretary

Susan Cholakian graduated from the University of Michigan in 2005 with a degree in American Culture. While at U of M, she served as Social Chair of the Armenian Students' Association and choreographed the Armenian dance program for the university's Encompass Multicultural Dance Show. Susan also served on the committee for the ASCA' s annual charity ball, The Hye Hop, which raised money for children in Armenia. She continued her work for the children in Armenia when she traveled to Armenia for the Armenian Service Project and worked at Camp Siranoosh. Susan is Meeting Planner for Discovery Chicago, a medical education company, part of Publicis Groupe.

Treasurer

Born and raised in Buenos Aires, Lorena was surrounded by a strong and welcoming Armenian community. At the age of 3, she became more exposed to the Armenian culture, history and language by attending the Armenian school of Vicente Lopez. In 1985, her family moved to the Chicago area and has lived there ever since. Shortly after graduating from undergraduate school, Lorena was introduced to a group of young Armenian women which re-connected her with the Armenian community. It is Lorena’s wish to be a part of an Armenian community in which Armenians with differing beliefs and varied backgrounds come together for the common purpose of keeping the Armenian culture alive.

Currently, Lorena works as a Human Resources Manager for United Airlines, where she has enjoyed a long career in a number of positions. Her undergraduate degree in Marketing and her MBA in Marketing and Econometrics/Statistics led her to positions as an Account Manager, Strategic Pricing Analyst and Customer Insights Manager. In her current position, she uses her analytical, communication and interpersonal skills to support investments designed to improve the employee experience at United.

Publicist

Avo’s AGBU ties date back to the early 1900’s to his maternal grandfather Harutiun Zakarian who was one of the early members of the newly formed AGBU organization. His older siblings were active members of the AGBU organization in Lebanon in addition to attending the AGBU High Schools. Following in the footsteps of his older siblings, Avo participated in the AGBU scouts as a member of Antranik Antelias. In his current capacity, Avo serves as the publicist for the Young Professionals of Chicago.

Committee Member, Senior Advisor

Born and raised in Chicago, Harry Onnig Madanyan has spent his entire life in Chicago. Growing up in Chicago his first exposure to the Armenian community was at church where he eventually became a deacon. During his undergraduate years he spent two summers in Washington DC with the Armenian Assembly where he was first an intern and then the intern coordinator. Since then he has made two trips to Armenia, once with the Armenian Service Program working with orphans and more recently with the Armenian Young Professionals group.

Committee Member

Danny was born and raised in Illinois and is a recent graduate of Carthage College in Kenosha, WI. After double majoring in Business Administration and Accounting, he recently began working for GMCS CPA Firm in Lake Forest, IL.

His involvement in the Armenian community has been growing from a young age. Since his latter teenage years, Danny has traveled to Armenia two times to participate in Habitat for Humanity, and in 2008 he participated in the AGBU New York Summer Internship Program. Additionally, he was elected to a two-year term on the ACYOA Central Council, and currently serves as Treasurer.

Committee Member

Linda Sultanian was born in Istanbul, Turkey and moved to the Chicagoland area with her family when she was 2 months old. Linda spent many summers as a teenager going to Hye Camp and ACYOA Sportsweekends where she met some of her best friends. She graduated from the University of Illinois in 2003 with a degree in Community Health and is currently working as an Administrative Assistant at a Continuing Care Retirement Community in the North Chicago suburbs. Linda enjoys meeting new people and hopes to make a difference in the Armenian community in Chicago.

Committee Member

Georganna was born in Southfield, Michigan and attended AGBU Alex and Marie Manoogian School and St. John's Sunday School. Her community involvement has taken her to as far places as a volunteer at Camp Siranoush, an orphanage in Armenia. She was the founder of The Armenian Students Association at Michigan State University where she also served as its President. Georganna has interned with the Armenian Assembly's Summer Internship program in 2001 in Washington D.C. and worked under the foreign relations department on Armenian related issues. She currently resides in Chicago and helps run an Apartment Leasing and Real Estate Company, Chicago Apartment Seekers. Georganna has always loved being a part of the Armenian community, and looks forward to helping grow YP Chicago!

Committee Member

Michael has been a resident of Chicago since 2004, he completed his undergraduate work at Loyola University Chicago and earned his degree in Finance and Marketing. Currently, he is completing his masters in business administration from Loyola. Prior to moving to Chicago, he lived in Studio City which is located in Los Angeles. As a young professional, he was drawn to this committee through his passion for supporting similar goals of his fellow colleagues. With an upbeat optimistic attitude he attempts to provide his input and support the critically important mission of the AGBU YP association.

Committee Member

Born and raised in Yerevan, Armenia, Ruzanna moved to the United States in 2005. Back in her home country, Ruzanna studied English and Political Science. She received her MA in journalism from DePaul University in 2009. She is fluent in Russian and is improving her Spanish.

Currently Ruzanna is a PR and Research Associate at Cook Associates, Inc. She is a freelance journalist and enjoys photography in her free time. Ruzanna loves tennis, good music and thought provoking conversations.

Committee Member

Michael was born and raised in Yerevan, Armenia. He moved to the United States with his parents and brother in 1995. Michael attended the University of Wisconsin in Madison earning a BS in Finance and also majoring in Russian Literature. Since 2006, Michael and his wife Ruzanna Tantushyan have lived in Chicago. He’s currently an Underwriter for Chartis Insurance.

Michael enjoys volunteering and has participated in events for Junior Achievement and Special Olympics here in Chicago. His hobbies include soccer, tennis, chess, and cryptic puzzles. Michael always enjoys conversations with his friends especially with a good double espresso.