Meet Dayra

“It has been interesting learning about Franco’s home country and the various places he has lived while we worked together.”

“The regularity that Speak! offers has made the difference. It keeps me accountable and focused.”

“Studying on my own was easy to do passively. In-person lessons make it impossible to hide behind fear or doubt.”

“Our Spanish class is one of the highlights of my week. Nattachya’s joyful energy makes learning fun, even on my hardest days.”

“Speak! Is a treasure to me. The different Spanish classes and teachers and the German instructors are all excellent.”

“A big part of the course is based on an overview of Italy and its culture.”

“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.”

Speak! partnered with UVA’s Pipelines and Pathways Program and Human Resources to support four newly-hired international employees with tailored English language instruction, equipping them with the essential skills for success in their roles as Patient Safety Companions.

I’ll never forget a dinner I enjoyed in Paris with Allison Zinder. I was traveling with my best friend and our daughters, and on a hot summer evening in 2016, we met Allison for a classic French bistro meal at one of her then-favorite brasseries - Le Petit Lutetia.

“Tatiana has a lot of experience teaching Ukrainian to English speakers, and it shows.”

“Lessons with Anne have given me the confidence that I can learn a new language.”

“I like that I can ask a question about a topic I'm unclear about and instantly have it explained to me.”

“Speak! Language Center has the perfect format for practicing your target language”

“I plan on continuing lessons until I can speak Spanish fluently at a conversational level!”

“Hearing questions from classmates (and hopefully them hearing mine) helps us all learn and grow on our Spanish journey.”

The coaching sessions with Alexis have been incredibly beneficial to my preparation for the Darden MBA program and beyond.

What attracted me the most to this program was that everybody is rooting for your success.

“I really like the flexibility, because being an MBA student during the recruiting season, I don’t have the most predictable schedule.”