About Torus
Background
Torus was founded in January of 2020 by Ramin Tokhi who was born in Kabul, Afghanistan, raised in Moscow, Russia and lives in Portland, Oregon.
The organization was formed from Ramin’s experiences as a naturalized citizen in the US, as someone who learned to speak English, adding to Russian and Dari, and then learned to teach it as he rose through the ranks of partner organization People-Places-Things.
Ramin not only teaches English, but he also trains other teachers how to teach English more effectively to speakers of other languages using hands-on, practical, and engaging activities developed by P-P-T.
After graduating from Portland State University with a degree in applied linguistics, Ramin established Torus, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
Torus bridges gaps between people and communities by facilitating transformative experiences of language and culture exchange.
We do this work through our different programs. We believe in connectivity and a sense of belonging to a community for immigrants and refugees, as well as anyone who has been living in the US for generations.
About the name
Many people ask us about the name of our organization. Many people think that it's related to the astrological sign (Taurus) - but actually, it refers to this circular, donut-like shape.
Ramin believes that different shapes have unique ways of symbolizing ideas or concepts, setting a mood or emotion, creating depth or movement, connect content and imagery in a layout. Indigenous people, and to an extent all people throughout history have been using different shapes to communicate their messages, share ideas and concepts, or learn about a subject matter more effectively. In fact, language teachers use different shapes to teach a language. One example is emojis which are ubiquitous not only in today's digital culture but in pop culture, professional conversation, and even political discourse. Shapes transcend beyond their forms, they reinforce what we know, and give us a new understanding of the world of semiotics.
Different shapes represent different concepts. For example, the shapes with straight lines and angles usually symbolize structure and order, while the shapes with curves are softer and represent connection and community.
One of Torus' values is connection and community. When reflecting on his experience with language learning, intercultural exchange, and education more generally, Ramin realized that the connection across these was that they are continuous, ongoing processes: you are always learning new information that gets integrated into what you already know which then reframes what you have already learned.
Torus being a donut-like shape represents connection, community, and the notion that language learning, culture learning, and developing intercultural skills are all an ongoing process inside of Torus.