October 2013 - Steve Leven

A student who’s advanced with extraordinary speed, Steve (“Esteban”) embarked on his journey to learn Spanish just one year ago in a Beginner 1 course at Tierra and is now a Higher Intermediate student. Inquisitive and thirsty for knowledge, he spends sizable amounts of time studying Spanish outside of class and always takes advantage of his instructors’ expertise to ask pertinent questions and solidify his understanding. A doctor who’s now (semi) retired, he’s been able to apply his newly-acquired language skills to better serve his Spanish-speaking patients. A jokester at heart, he revels in the camaraderie established among classmates and misses no opportunity to test out his humor in Spanish. As he plans for a future immersion experience south of the border, we applaud Steve for his impressive drive to master the Spanish language in all its nuances.

Name: Steve Leven
Occupation: Semi-retired Physician
Time Studying at Tierra: One year

1) Why are you studying Spanish?

"Language is the bridge that connects people and being able to speak Spanish will help me make closer connections with people in Latin America and Spain. I have always been very interested in language and travel. Semi-retirement has given me the time to focus on learning Spanish and later to do some traveling in Spanish speaking countries.
Also, as a practicing physician with many Spanish speaking patients, being able to speak Spanish has opened for me a wonderful world of being more connected with my patients. The warm smile on the faces of my patients when I greet them in their native language is truly priceless – both for them and for me."

2) What is your favorite part about your experience here at Tierra?

"There are many aspects of the educational experience at Tierra that are truly wonderful – the small classes, the well designed classrooms,  and the carefully designed and well implemented class programs – from beginner to intermediate to advanced classes. But the best part of the Tierra educational experience is the people of Tierra – from the staff who take care of student registration and scheduling to the teachers.

The teachers are native Spanish speakers, they organize fantastic lesson plans, and during class they are engaging, friendly, and patient. The classes are lively and fun and every student is given ample time to participate in class and to ask (and get great answers) to any questions they may have."

3) Can you tell us of a time you have been able to use what you have learned studying here?

"On many occasions I’ve used my Spanish speaking abilities to communicate with patients and on two occasions I was able to place phone calls to Latin America to investigate places I might want to visit – and I was able to make both calls entirely in Spanish."

¡Felicidades Steve!