About Us
Launched in 1998, studyspanish.com was a pioneer in educational websites. Over the years, we have provided free web-based services to millions of Spanish students and teachers.
Our online services and CD course have helped thousands of serious students learn to speak Spanish fluently. As a true 21st century company, we do not suffer from geographic constraints. Our extensive network of experts and specialists extends across the globe.
Key contributors include:
Ken Ryan
Ken began his entrepreneurial career at the age of seven, when he hosted a neighborhood carnival for muscular dystrophy, and he has never looked back. In 1996, he launched StudySpanish.com with the goal of creating the best website for learning Spanish. Like so many other technology success stories (Hewlett-Packard 1938, Apple 1975, Google 1998) StudySpanish.com was born in a garage. But, while Steve Jobs can claim to have started Apple Computer in a garage, Ken can top that. Not only did he start the company in a garage, he also lived there! He is extremely happy to report that neither he nor the company have resided in the garage for many years. He is currently developing a new website dedicated to medical Spanish.
Juan Gómez Rodríguez
Born in Arequipa, Peru in 1940, Juan grew up working in the small market owned by his parents. At the age of 18 Juan entered Universidad San Agustín Arequipa where he graduated with a degree in education. He went immediately to work as an elementary school teacher and later as a high school teacher. Juan continued his education, obtaining a Master's Degree from La Universidad Católica del Perú, in Lima, and finally a Ph.d. in social sciences. Juan then worked 25 years as a college professor of history and anthropology, and retired from the University of Arequipa. He moved with his family to the US in 1995, gaining citizenship in 2000. He continues to teach Spanish at the college level in Alaska.
Alfredo Duarte
Alfredo Duarte specializes in media production, translation and performance. He is a native speaker of Spanish with a graduate degree in Linguistics & Media. He is also a certified interpreter in English and Spanish. In addition to those two languages, Alfredo speaks Russian and French. At CNN Alfredo hosted, wrote and produced a news magazine and a business program for broadcast to all Latin American countries and Spain. He co-authored the CNN Stylebook in Spanish and his written work has been published in the US, Latin America and the Russian Federation. At the Carter Presidential Center, where he was a media analyst, he was also the official translator for President Jimmy Carter's articles for the Latin American press. He is the Spanish-language commentator, simultaneous interpreter and script translator for the Academy Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards, Miss Universe Pageant, and Latin Grammys, live on TNT.
Tony Federico
Tony is the guy who keeps the website humming like an expensive sports car. He understands all the geeky terminology like "webserver" "Apache" "Perl" and "MySQL." He's been our IT point man since day one. He even knows how to "flash the BIOS" and "sync the servers." When he's not working on the servers or writing code, you might find him tinkering with his 1987 Mercedez 560SL or volunteering at his young daughter's elementary school. Tony has been creating software solutions for over 25 years, and even has his own Internet search engine.
Mónica Zapico Falconer
Born in northern Spain, Mónica took her first trip abroad at the age of nine and thus began her passion for foreign languages. She studied at University of Oviedo, Spain, to earn a degree in Modern Languages, the same year she graduated in French from Escuela Oficial de Idiomas de Oviedo. Languages were her hobby for years, and at some point she found herself translating from Latin and ancient Greek, conjugating in German, and translating from English into French and Spanish. Also passionate about traveling and cultures, Mónica has lived in England, Ireland and France. She eventually found herself in Alaska pursuing another dream, -- graduating from a foreign University. She taught Spanish at Montessori schools in The Last Frontier while attending college. Mónica graduated in Languages from the University of Alaska Anchorage in 1998 where she taught for the Department of Languages for the following eight years. She currently lives in Alaska with her family and travels to her home land, Spain, every year. Mónica has added content to this website for a few years now. She enjoyed building some of the lessons, quizzes and tests. You probably will hear her in some of the listening exercises, read some of the cultural notes that she has written for this site, and she is now in charge of contents and running the business.
Jeff Arndt
Jeff grew up in Southern California in the midst of a thriving Mexican American and Latino community. His best friends were his next door neighbors, who were from Costa Rica. When he was old enough, he began traveling to Mexico. Eventually he learned Spanish and continued to travel throughout Mexico, Central and South America. Jeff has an ever deepening admiration for the history, culture, and spirit of the Latino and indigenous cultures he has encountered through the years. As a long-distance runner, one of the highlights of his life was participating in an ultramarathon with the legendary Tarahumara Indians from the Copper Canyon, Mexico, who are among the greatest endurance runners in the world.
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