Meet Liz
Meet Elizabeth Launer, Speak!'s Administrative Coordinator and English Program Leader. Since joining the team in 2012, Liz has helped connect thousands of students with the right instructors while supporting Speak!'s international teaching team and English programs.
Administrative Coordinator. English Specialist.
"I love being part of a community where every teacher brings a unique culture, perspective, and story, and helping those connections reach our students."
— Liz Launer
Elizabeth Launer
Elizabeth (Liz) Launer has been helping English learners succeed for more than three decades. A native of Saratoga Springs, New York, she holds an M.A. in English from Hunter College and a B.A. in Comparative Religion from New York University, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa. Before joining Speak! in 2012, she taught English and ESL at colleges and universities in North Carolina and Virginia, including more than twenty years at Piedmont Virginia Community College.
Today, Liz serves as Speak!'s Administrative Coordinator and is the organizational heart of the school. She oversees student-teacher matchups, coordinates schedules and classrooms at the Vault, and works closely with Christina on everything from new programs and partnerships to community events and day-to-day operations. If a student finds the perfect instructor, there's a good chance Liz helped make that connection happen.
Liz also leads Speak!'s English and ESL program, supporting curriculum development, mentoring instructors, and helping build partnerships that bring high-quality language instruction to individuals, businesses, and organizations throughout the community.
What she enjoys most is working with Speak!'s extraordinary international team of teachers. Every day offers the chance to learn about another language, another culture, and another perspective, making her own work a continuous learning experience as well.
Meet Franco
Meet Franco Perez, the passionate Spanish teacher, curriculum designer, and Director of Speak!’s Online Academy. For more than six years he has helped learners worldwide achieve their goals, traveling the globe and bringing his experience as a filmmaker, actor, and storyteller into every class.
Spanish Instructor. Curriculum Designer. Online Academy Director.
"I love being part of a community where every teacher brings a unique culture, perspective, and story, and helping those connections reach our students."
—Franco Perez
Franco Perez
For more than six years, Franco has helped Spanish learners from every corner of the world achieve their language goals, turning study into real confidence and connection.
As a passionate teacher, curriculum designer, and Director of Speak!’s Online Academy, he shapes every learning journey with creativity and care. When he’s not in the virtual classroom, Franco is out exploring the world: meeting people from different cultures, practicing languages, and often reuniting with his students for shared adventures that turn lessons into lasting memories.
His artistic background runs deep. Franco has written, directed, and produced multiple audiovisual projects, including a television series. As an actor and singer, he has performed in numerous productions both in Argentina and abroad, with experiences that even include working as a fit model for Lady Gaga.
Franco elevates the art of teaching and learning by placing each student’s needs at the center. Through the flipped classroom approach, deep emotional connection, and the latest advances in cognitive grammar, he creates classes that feel natural, dynamic, and truly transformative.
On stage or in the classroom, Franco has a gift for transporting you into a world where communication is the foundation of everything.
Meet Christina
Meet Christina Ball, founder of Speak! Language Center. A Yale-trained Italianist, Fulbright Scholar, and lifelong language learner, Christina has spent more than 30 years helping people connect through language, culture, and conversation.
Founder+Director. Language Education Leader. Italian Specialist.
"Speak! began with my love of teaching and learning languages. More than twenty years later, I believe even more strongly that bringing people together through language, culture, and conversation is one of the most meaningful things we can do.
— Christina Ball, Ph.D
Christina Ball, Ph.D.
Christina Ball has spent her life helping people connect across languages and cultures. A former university professor with a Ph.D. in Italian Language and Literature from Yale University and a Fulbright Scholar in Bologna, Italy, she has spent more than three decades teaching Italian and inspiring others to discover the joy of language learning.
After studying Art History at Bowdoin College, Christina's passion for Italy led her to Yale, where she specialized in Italian language and literature. She later led educational and study abroad programs throughout Italy, creating immersive experiences that brought language and culture to life far beyond the classroom.
In 2004, Christina founded Ecco Italy, the seedling of Speak!, to create a more personal, conversation-based approach to language learning, one that values curiosity, cultural understanding, and genuine human connection as much as grammar and vocabulary. Today, she continues to guide Speak!'s programs and team of over 50 instructors while studying Spanish and French herself, believing that the best language teachers never stop being language learners.
Before founding Speak!, Christina also wrote about film, food, travel, and popular culture for magazines, another expression of her lifelong curiosity about people and the stories that connect us. When she's not working with students or collaborating with Speak!'s talented team of instructors, she enjoys acting, theater, yoga, fitness, art, travel, and exploring the world.
She lives in Charlottesville, Virginia, with her husband, Enrico, an Italian professor.
