Beyond Words
Language, culture, travel, and stories from the Speak! community
ITALIAN STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: ANN LAWRENCE GRASTY
“The things I learned from my instructor, Noemi, simply couldn’t be learned through an app”
Ann Lawrence Grasty, Executive Director, University Annual Giving & Stewardship
Japanese Student Spotlight: Mark
“Learning Japanese feels like expanding my mind—it makes me see the world differently.”
Mark Floryan, Computer Science Professor
Spanish Student Spotlight: Erich
“The regularity that Speak! offers has made the difference. It keeps me accountable and focused.”
Erich Purpur, UVA Library
Spanish Student Spotlight: Full-Time Nurse Kat Mirate
“Our Spanish class is one of the highlights of my week. Nattachya’s joyful energy makes learning fun, even on my hardest days.”
Kat Mirate, Nurse at UVA Health
Spanish Student Spotlight: Sharice Welch, UVA’s McIntire School
“The individualized attention from Franco in the one-on-one classes is really great; he is able to tailor the classes according to my needs.”
Sharice Welch, UVA McIntire Admissions
Student Spotlight: Sociology Professor Fiona Greenland Learns Ukrainian to Support her Work and Travels
“Tatiana has a lot of experience teaching Ukrainian to English speakers, and it shows.”
Fiona Greenland, Professor of Sociology
Spanish Student Spotlight: Career Coach Melissa Hannah
“Speak! Language Center has the perfect format for practicing your target language”
Melissa Hannah, Career Coach
Spanish Student Spotlight: Jess Wenger
“Hearing questions from classmates (and hopefully them hearing mine) helps us all learn and grow on our Spanish journey.”
Jess Wenger, Facilities Management
ENGLISH STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: NYDIA
“I really like the flexibility, because being an MBA student during the recruiting season, I don’t have the most predictable schedule.”
Nydia, Darden MBA Student
Student Spotlight: ANA
“Our classes are very dynamic. Dana always has something new and especially a lot of patience and didactics. It's an enjoyable environment, and everything flows well.“
Ana Oliveira, Biologist
B-Speak! Coaching Student Spotlight: RIFQI
“I think at the end of the day, if you talk with your coach and you really know what you need, B-Speak! Coaching will provide the session by tailoring your need to achieve results! For me it is a great remedy for my communication skill“
Rifqui Syuja, Darden MBA Student
Student Spotlight: HISTORY PROF. DAVID SINGERMAN - AND HIS BABY DAUGHTER!
“Being conversant in another language opens your view of the world, and I really missed that feeling. I found it such a joy to be immersed in another linguistic world, and my lessons with Paola were the hour I looked forward to most every week.“
David Singerman, Professor of History
Student Spotlight: JEFF'S SPANISH ADVENTURE
“During my travels, I always wished I could speak to people in their own language. I thought that if I learned Spanish, I might be more likely to use it in other countries and in our own, and therefore to remember it“
Jeff Leopold, Darden School of Business
Student Spotlight: PHILIP'S GAP YEAR SPANISH JOURNEY
“My pandemic experience has been all-but-consistent, but having daily classes with Alejandra (or even a less intense but still regular schedule in the fall) vastly helped me through this year..“
Philip DiMeglio, Undergraduate
Student Spotlight: CAROLINE
“I have definitely gotten more confident and comfortable at speaking Japanese which was my main goal over the summer. I will also be ahead in grammar and reading Kanji before starting my Japanese classes this fall.“
Caroline, Doctoral Student in Anthropology
Student Spotlight: KATHLEEN BOROWITZ
“Just being able to enter the patient’s room and introduce myself and my role in Spanish makes a huge difference in establishing trust and acceptance.“
Kathleen Borowitz, UVA Health