Habla Ya Spanish Schools' Directors, Spanish Teachers & Staff

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Meet the Schools' Teachers & Directors

Trained, passionate & highly experienced Spanish teachers!

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If you're interested in being part of this exclusive team of professionals, please Contact Us. Besides Spanish teachers, we are also continually hiring people passionate about customer service, tourism, sales, marketing, human resources, SEO, social media, management in general and other areas. If you have what it takes to be part of the best of the best, what are you waiting for?

Habla Ya's Directors

Meet our leaders...Click to collapse...
HR Manager - Arelis Mendoza | Boquete
Arelis Mendoza, Spanish Teacher & HR Manager
  • Habla Ya Member Since: 2008
  • Civil Status: Married, 2 children
  • Hometown: Volcán
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish
  • University Degrees: Bachelor Degree in Spanish
  • Interests & Hobbies: Romantic Music, Movies and her Family
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: Panama's Beaches
  • Favorite Food: Barbecues
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: Zipline Canopy Tour
  • Spanish Learning Advice: Practice makes Perfect
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: Carnivals
School Director - Dwan Marie Tristan | Panama City
Dwan Marie Tristan, School Director at Habla Ya Panama City
  • Habla Ya Member Since: 2015
  • Civil Status: Single, one baby (Schnauzer dog)
  • Hometown: Panama City
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish, French and English
  • University Degrees: Tourism
  • Interests & Hobbies: Listening to music, dancing, eating, eating and eating!
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: San Blas
  • Favorite Food: French Cuisine
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: Enjoy the Nightlife
  • Spanish Learning Advice: Practice!
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: Fiestas Patrias
School Director - Cesar Cabrera | Bocas del Toro
Cesar Cabrera, School Director at Habla Ya Bocas del Toro
  • Habla Ya Member Since: 2011
  • Civil Status: Single
  • Hometown: Panama City but my mother is from Chile
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish and English
  • University Degrees: Bachelor Degree in Corporate Psychology
  • Interests & Hobbies: Riding my motorcycle, working out, going to the beach, party
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: Casco Viejo
  • Favorite Food: Chilean empanadas
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: visit the beautiful beaches
  • Spanish Learning Advice: never stop having fun
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: Christmas
General Manager - Carlos Raúl Cabrera
Carlos Raúl Cabrera Toledo, Habla Ya Co-Founder & General Manager
  • Habla Ya Member Since: 2005
  • Civil Status: Married, 2 cats, born in 1981
  • Hometown: David
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish and English
  • University Degrees: Industrial Engineering
  • Interests & Hobbies: Martial Arts, Sports and Reading
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: the Chiriqui Gulf
  • Favorite Food: Thai, Vietnamese and Japanese
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: Hiking and Surfing
  • Spanish Learning Advice: don't wait, JUST DO IT!
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: New Years in Bocas
SIGN UP TO LEARN SPANISH WITH THE BEST SPANISH TEACHERS...
Our team of Directors lead the path by example everyday. Several of them are Spanish teachers as well so they perfectly know what it takes to be the best of the best. If you need literally anything, they'll be there for you.
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Spanish Teachers & Academic Department

Meet who'll teach you...Click to collapse...
Academic Director - Mitzila Vega | Boquete
Spanish Teacher - Mitzila Vega
  • Habla Ya Member Since: 2011
  • Civil Status: Married
  • Hometown: David
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish
  • University Degrees: Bachelor Degree in Middle School Education
  • Interests & Hobbies: Dancing, reading, visiting new places
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: Parque Nacional Volcan Baru and Coiba Island
  • Favorite Food: Seafood
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: Hiking
  • Spanish Learning Advice: Don't be afraid to practice
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: Carnivals
Academic Director - Ezequiel Morales | Panama City
Ezequiel Morales, Spanish Teacher at Habla Ya Panama City
  • Habla Ya Member Since: 2013
  • Civil Status: Single
  • Hometown: Bocas del Toro
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish, Ngäbe and English
  • University Degrees: High School Teacher
  • Interests & Hobbies: Read, practice English and go for walks
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: Kusapin
  • Favorite Food: Rice with Coconut
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: visit a Comarca Ngäbe- Buglé
  • Spanish Learning Advice: Enjoy your mistakes
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: All of them
Spanish Teacher - Leidys Pitti | Boquete
Spanish Teacher - Leidys Pitti
  • Habla Ya Member Since: 2010
  • Civil Status: Single, 1 child
  • Hometown: David
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish
  • University Degrees: Bachelor Degree in Spanish
  • Interests & Hobbies: Read, Dance, Cook, Sleep and Visit New Places
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: The Panama Canal
  • Favorite Food: Roasted Pork and Arroz con Guandú
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: Horseback Riding
  • Spanish Learning Advice: Spanish is a very beautiful language that will definitely boost your professional career
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: Patronales and Fairs
Spanish Teacher - Sergio Ariel William | Panama City
Spanish Teacher - Sergio William
  • Habla Ya Member Since: 2015
  • Civil Status: Single
  • Hometown: Panama City
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish
  • University Degrees: High School Teacher
  • Interests & Hobbies: Football Soccer
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: Isla Contadora
  • Favorite Food: Panamanian Food
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: Visit the Hard Rock Cafe Rooftop Bar
  • Spanish Learning Advice: Practice
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: Patronales de Santiago
SIGN UP TO LEARN SPANISH WITH THE BEST SPANISH TEACHERS...
When choosing a Spanish school, teachers are the single most important element to consider. Well trained, experienced and passionate Spanish teachers make the difference between learning the language or not.
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Customer Service Department

We're here to help...Click to collapse...
Customer Experience Director - Giselle Montenegro | Boquete
Giselle Montenegro, Customer Experience Director in Boquete, Panama
  • Habla Ya Member Since: 2012
  • Civil Status: Single
  • Hometown: Boquete
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish and English
  • University Degrees: Bachelor Degree in English
  • Interests & Hobbies: Reading
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: Bocas del Toro
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: Hiking
  • Spanish Learning Advice: life is one... enjoy!
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: Boquete Coffee and Flower Festival
Volunteer Coordinator - Amado Morales | Boquete
Amado Morales, Volunteer Coordinator
  • Habla Ya Member Since: 2015
  • Civil Status: Single
  • Hometown: Boquete
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish, English, French
  • University Degrees: Bachelor's Degree in Public Relations & Corporate Image
  • Interests & Hobbies: The Eurovision Song Contest, Classic Films, Reading and 100% Instagram Addict!
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: The Atlantic Coast of Panama (Bocas del Toro, Colon & San Blas)
  • Favorite Food: Thai & Southern American Food!
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: Get out of the city and hit the country side
  • Spanish Learning Advice: Interact with local people makes the learning easier.
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: The Chiricano Drum Festival in November
Volunteer Director - Ludo Jolly | Bocas del Toro
Spanish Teacher - Malkidia García
  • Habla Ya Member Since: 2017
  • Civil Status: Single
  • Hometown: Royan, France
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish, English, French
  • University Degrees: Massage Therapist, Nutritionist
  • Interests & Hobbies: Gardening, Surfing, Martial Arts
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: Kusapin
  • Favorite Food: Healthy
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: Surfing and Hiking through the Jungle
  • Spanish Learning Advice: Have fun!
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: Feria del Mar
SIGN UP TO LEARN SPANISH WITH THE BEST SPANISH TEACHERS...
When choosing a Spanish school, teachers are the single most important element to consider. Well trained, experienced and passionate Spanish teachers make the difference between learning the language or not.
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Language Travel Consultants

We're here to help you plan your trip...Click to collapse...
Jaleesha Majed - Language Travel Consultant
Jaleesha Majeed - Language Travel Consultant
  • Outsourced Since: 2016
  • Civil Status: Single as a dollar bill
  • Hometown: San Diego, California
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish and English
  • University Degrees: Bachelor of Arts in Political Science with a minor in Spanish
  • Interests & Hobbies: Dancing, listening to music and traveling
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: Bocas del Toro
  • Favorite Food: Vietnamese
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: Ziplining
  • Spanish Learning Advice: Habla, ya! Speak at any given moment that you receive the opportunity to practice.
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: Carnival
Head of Marketing - Julio Santamaria
Co-Owner, Co-Founder, Head of Marketing & Sales - Julio Santamaria
  • Habla Ya Member Since: 2005
  • Civil Status: Married, 3 children
  • Hometown: Panama City
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish and English
  • University Degrees: Engineering in Electronics & Telecommunications
  • Interests & Hobbies: Reading, TV Series, Movies, Surfing, Cycling, Hiking
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: Azuero
  • Favorite Food: Hamburgers
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: Island Hopping in the Chiriqui Gulf
  • Spanish Learning Advice: PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE AND GIVE A...
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: Carnivals
SIGN UP FOR THE MOST AMAZING SPANISH LEARNING EXPERIENCE...
Traveling to a foreign country can be challenging... that is why our team of Language Travel Consultants are here to assist you 7 days a week to answer any questions you have, help you plan your trip and make sure you get here safe and sound.
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Former Habla Ya Staff

Who's been part of this...Click to collapse...
Irma Changmarín Isaza
Irma Changmarín, former Academic Director

Irma Changmarín, an industrial engineer that discovered that teaching was her vocation. She had 5 years of experience teaching Spanish as a foreign language in Panama City when she went to Sevilla and took the renowned course for teaching Spanish as a foreign language at the famous institution CLIC IH Sevilla in Spain. After that we hired her. Irma trained several of our current teachers in the Communicative method for language teaching and together with the rest of our teachers she set the foundations to design and built our initial level system and course syllabus.

  • Joined Habla Ya in 2006 for 1 year
  • Engineering in Industrial Engineering
  • Masters in Business Administration
  • Diploma for teaching Spanish as a foreign language in Spain
Lucía Alvarado Cantero
Lucía Alvarado, former Academic Director

Lucía joined Habla Ya on a temporal contract during 3 months to do the training of our first teachers. Our first teachers had Spanish degrees from local universities but no previous experience in teaching Spanish to foreigners.

  • Joined Habla Ya in 2005 during 3 months.
  • Degree in philology in 2003 from Universidad de Costa Rica, San Pedro de Montes de Oca, San José.
  • Previous experience at Costa Rican Language Academy, Forester Instituto Internacional and WAYRA Instituto de Español.
School Director - Lorena Pitti | Boquete
Lorena Pitti, Spanish Teacher and School Director
  • Habla Ya Member: 2005 - 2015
  • Civil Status: Single, 1 child
  • Hometown: Boquete
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish and English
  • University Degrees: Bachelor Degree in English
  • Interests & Hobbies: Spend time with her son, taking him out all she can
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: The Panama Canal
  • Favorite Food: Fried Chicken and Sancocho
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: Horseback Riding & Hot Springs
  • Spanish Learning Advice: Be patient, don't give up and persevere
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: The Flower and Coffee Festival in Boquete
Academic Director - Janeth Martinez | Boquete
Janeth Martínez, Spanish Teacher and Academic Director
  • Habla Ya Member: 2007 - 2014
  • Civil Status: Married, 2 children
  • Hometown: Los Algarrobos
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish and English
  • University Degrees: Bachelor Degree in Spanish
  • Interests & Hobbies: Rock Climbing, Exercising, Reading, Hiking
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: Boquete
  • Favorite Food: Mexican
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: Rock Climbing
  • Spanish Learning Advice: Be Constant, Work Hard and Don't be Afraid to Practice
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: November 28th
Academic Coordinator - Ericka Tapia | Boquete
Erica Tapia, Spanish Teacher & Academic Coordinator
  • Habla Ya Member: 2005 - 2021
  • Civil Status: Married, 1 children
  • Hometown: Volcán
  • Languages Spoken: Spanish
  • University Degrees: Bachelor Degree in Spanish
  • Interests & Hobbies: Hiking and Cooking
  • Place in Panama you can't miss: Boquete
  • Favorite Food: Italian
  • Recommended Activity in Panama: Hike & Camp to the Volcán Barú
  • Spanish Learning Advice: Be Patient and Persevere
  • Panamanian Tradition or Party you can't miss: Carnivals
SIGN UP TO LEARN SPANISH AT PANAMA'S LEADING SPANISH SCHOOLS...
Panamanian Spanish Schools are very recent in comparison to their counterpart in Costa Rica. In Costa Rica you can find more than 80 or 90 language schools throughout the country and several of them have been around for more than 30 or 40 years. In Panama you'll not find schools with more than 20 years of experience in teaching Spanish. This is why we decided to import Lucía's experience from Costa Rica.
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