WASHINGTON, Sept. 14, 2021 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — Isabella & Ferdinand Academia de Español, a respected Spanish language learning program for children based in Washington, D.C., has gained accreditation by Instituto Cervantes, established by the government of Spain in 1991 as the global authority on the teaching of Spanish linguistic standards. Isabella & Ferdinand will be the only Spanish language learning center currently accredited by the Instituto Cervantes in the nation’s capital.

Pursuant to the new accreditation from Instituto Cervantes, Isabella & Ferdinand is now fully authorized to administer and prepare students in grades 5-12 to take the “Diploma de Español como Lengua Extrajera” (DELE or Diploma for Spanish as Foreign Language in English), an international examination that measures a student’s language aptitude in Spanish.  Isabella & Ferdinand will administer the DELE examination at Horace Mann Elementary School where it has established a teaching residency, as well as Washington Global Public Charter School.

Isabella & Ferdinand was founded in 2009 in Washington DC by Latina professionals Pilar Frank O’Leary and Alexandra Migoya to immerse children from their earliest years in quality Spanish language instruction in an authentic cultural context. The program offers group classes for children from 2 years and older as well as private tutoring and customized one-on-one classes for older children and adults. In each class, students learn the language according to the norms of the Instituto Cervantes in Madrid, while learning about the important artists, poets, writers and historical cultural events of Spain and Latin America through a unique CultureCentric Immersion curriculum the co-founders developed. Mayra Abasto is the program’s current executive director.

Pilar Frank O’Leary said of the Cervantes’ designation, “We are honored to receive this long-awaited and highly prestigious accreditation from the Instituto Cervantes whose linguistic norms are at the very heart of our curriculum. We believe that the Spanish language deserves to be taught in the United States in the right way, so that children not only grow up speaking the language properly, but also understanding and embracing its associated cultures. If we can achieve that in some small measure, we feel we will have been successful.”

The DELE examination will be offered by Isabella & Ferdinand several times a year according to the Instituto Cervantes’ testing schedules and local demand.

For press inquiries or more information about Isabella & Ferdinand Academia de Español and how to enroll students to prepare and take the DELE examination, visit Isabella & Ferdinand’s website www.isabellaandferdinand.org or send an email to [email protected].

SOURCE Isabella & Ferdinand Academia de Español