TEC Student of the Month Award

Since first enrolling at Tierra two years ago, Debbie has shown great dedication and tenacity in her Spanish studies. In her work as a medical social worker, she’s had the opportunity to use her burgeoning Spanish skills to help her patients feel valued and build rapport. Passionate about travel, she and her husband Jeff, who is also a student at Tierra, have made multiple trips to Spanish-speaking countries, including hiking the Camino de Santiago in northern Portugal and Spain. Debbie has shown incredible growth in her approach to learning Spanish, becoming very adaptable and embracing the ups and downs of the learning journey. A kind and compassionate classmate, she brings positive energy and helps build camaraderie among her classmates in any group she joins. We are honored to have Debbie as part of our amazing student community and look forward to continuing to see her reach her goals and beyond.

Since starting out in a Beginner 1 class at Tierra a year and a half ago, Dane has been wholly dedicated to his Spanish studies and has made great strides! Motivated to study Spanish by his love of travel and desire to challenge himself to learn new things, he seized the opportunity to practice his skills this year when he made a trip to Spain. Analytical in nature, Dane tends to ask the questions that coax out shades of meaning and benefit the whole class. He is warm and kind and clearly enjoys building relationships with his classmates. We are honored to count Dane among our amazing community of students and look forward to seeing him cheerfully continue on his learning journey.

Since starting in a Beginner 1 course over a year ago, Emmett has been extremely dedicated to his Spanish studies. A registered nurse who works down the street from Tierra at Providence Portland hospital, he comes to Spanish class after working a 12-hour shift, yet he eagerly participates and rarely misses a class. He has multiple motivations for learning Spanish, including his love of travel, dream to be bilingual, and desire to communicate with his Spanish-speaking patients. With a dry sense of humor and natural empathy, he is a kind and supportive classmate who clearly enjoys the camaraderie built in group classes. We are honored to count Emmett among our amazing student community at Tierra and look forward to continuing to see his skills blossom as he advances on in his learning journey.