TEC Student of the Month Award

With an air of sweetness and good will, Diane is a delight to be around and brightens any class she’s in. Retired from her career as an arts and dance educator, she has that spark of curiosity characteristic of people who envision learning as a lifetime endeavor. She now harnesses this passion for learning and culture to work towards her goal of becoming fluent in Spanish. An enthusiastic traveler, she is motivated in part to be able to have authentic conversations with people she encounters on trips to Mexico and Latin America. Interested in many cultures, she is also busy exploring her own origins, learning Japanese and enjoying the flower arranging tradition “Ikebana”. One would be hard-pressed to find a more dedicated student - she takes her Spanish studies seriously and is a warm and supportive classmate. We are grateful to have Diane in our community at Tierra and look forward to continuing to see her abilities blossom.

Since starting her studies at Tierra, Marianne has been a joyful presence in her Spanish classes, eager to expand her knowledge and build community. A family physician, she has long used her Spanish skills to help the many Spanish-speaking families in the clinic she works at to improve their health. Passionate about travel, she's also a great story-teller with many insights about language and culture. Her enthusiastic contributions in class help to create a highly interactive dynamic in which all students participate and enrich the learning environment. We're grateful to count Marianne as part of our community at Tierra and look forward to continuing to witness the process as she hones her skills and never stops learning.
 

With a sunny disposition and endless enthusiasm for her Spanish studies, Candice’s presence brightens any class she joins. Her delightful sense of humor finds an outlet both during class in her playful attitude and in the creative and often hilarious compositions she comes up with for her homework assignments, fomenting feelings of camaraderie and inspiring her classmates to follow suit. Formerly a social worker, she’s now a culinary instructor who seizes the opportunity to use the Spanish she’s learning with native-speakers with whom she works and mingles. We’re thrilled to count Candice as a part of our community at Tierra and can’t wait to see how her passion for learning continues to cultivate her impressive progress.