John Boyle

Born in Scotland, John has been a resident in Seville for 20 years and has 12 years of experience teaching on American programs as well as developing English Language teaching techniques for Spanish students.

John earned a Post-Graduate Degree in International Marketing from Napier University (Edinburgh) and has held the following posts: Lecturer in International Marketing at Napier University; Commercial Overseas Manager of Grange Carpets, Dundee; Manager of Berlitz Translation Bureau in London; Director of Berlitz Language Centre in Edinburgh; Lecturer in International Finance, Pablo de Olavide University (Seville).

John is married with three young children and loves the countryside, travel, history, and Spain!

Jesús Diaz Vidal

A native of Spain, Jesús Díaz Vidal graduated in 1997 from the University of Seville with an undergraduate degree in English Language. Inspired by his experiences living in both the United States (Texas and Michigan) and Northern England, Jesús has decided to pursue a career in the field of study abroad to promote language learning reinforced by culture.

Jesús is currently preparing his doctoral thesis in Speech Therapy at the University of Seville. His main interests are Second Language Learning and Teaching, both of Spanish and English, with a special focus on pronunciation. He has worked for the University of Seville, the University of Michigan, and various study abroad programs since 1999, teaching courses in Spanish language, English speech and pronunciation, and the culture of Spain. He has also facilitated agreements between the University of Seville and US educational institutions to promote study abroad.

Jesús Díaz believes Seville, his hometown, is a wonderful environment in which to learn Spanish. The interesting accent of its inhabitants, its multicultural atmosphere, and its proximity to nearby Granada and Cadiz (where you will most certainly find Jesús during carnival), make Seville his first recommendation to American students.

Elena Gavira Villegas

Born and raised in Seville, Elena has been teaching language for over seven years. She speaks Spanish, English, French, German, and Italian.

Elena has a Bachelor's in English Language from the Universidad de Sevilla, and she is currently pursuing a second degree in German Language.

Elena has worked in both the education and tourism sectors, both of which have always kept her in contact with other cultures and languages. She has an extremely proactive approach to teaching, keeping her students engaged by incorporating in-class and out-of-class activities, group projects, and presentations.

Verónica Hernández Alcántara

Born in Córdoba, Spain, Verónica has lived in Scotland, England, Austria and the United States. She speaks Spanish, English and French.

Verónica holds a Bachelor's degree in English Language from the Universidad de Córdoba. She graduated with honors specializing in the methodology of Teaching English as a Second Language.

Verónica has always worked closely with international students as an English teacher, Spanish teacher, language tutor, translator, and interpreter. Having been an international student herself and understanding the desire of students to use language to interact with the local culture, Verónica incorporates an active learning approach in her courses to maximize retention, vocabulary building, and an overall enjoyment of learning.

Rosa More

Born in Seville, Spain, Rosa spent six years living in Miami, Florida and travelled extensively through the United States and Latin America. Speaking both English and Spanish, Rosa's love for history, culture and travel greatly influenced her decision to pursue a career in the study abroad field.

Rosa holds a Bachelor's in History and Geography from the Universidad de Seville with a specialization in Contemporary History. She is currently pursuing a Master's degree in Mediterranean History at the Universidad Pablo de Olavide.

After working in diverse occupations in various sectors, Rosa returned to academics as a multidisciplinary instructor teaching in both English and Spanish for EA.

Rosa is an avid reader and loves to travel and interact with people from different cultures.

José Luis Muñoz Garrido

José Luis is originally from Seville, but his love for languages and cultures has taken him to various countries through Europe and Africa. José Luis speaks Spanish, English, Classic Arabic (a Moroccan dialect of Arabic), Dutch, and French.

José Luis has a Bachelor's degree in Arabic language from the Universidad de Sevilla, having spent his fourth year in Leiden, Holland.

José Luis' has been teaching languages for over nine years.

Mary Alice Soreiro

Mary Alice is an international citizen. Originally from the U.S., she brings over 20 years of international work and volunteer experience to CEA having lived in various cultures all over the world. Mary Alice now uses her acquired knowledge to help others understand culture.

Mary Alice earned a Master's of Science in Education, Culture and Society from the University of Pennsylvania and her undergraduate degree in East Asian Studies from Pennsylvania State University.

Mary Alice's love of foreign cultures and her knowledge of the English, Spanish, Japanese, and Thai languages have taken her all over the world, exposing her to the cultures of Peru, Japan, Thailand, Spain, and the U.S. Her work as a Peace Corp volunteer, a language teacher, and a public speaker on cultural values, combined with her travel and language experiences have provided Mary with a knowledge of extreme cultural differences and supplied her with a series of personal anecdotes that help her empower students to analyze and investigate cultural values and differences.

Javier Garcia Pereda

Javier García Pereda was born in Cordoba, Spain in 1979 and was a military brat whose family finally settled in Cordoba. He studied at the University of Cordoba and received a degree in Food Sciences and Technology. During his college years, Javier worked as a Karate instructor during the winters and as a swimming pool lifeguard during the summers. He was a member of the University Law Tuna, a traditional group of Spanish musicians that use string instruments like guitars, and he travelled around Europe and America singing traditional songs from Spain.

After graduating from the University of Cordoba, Javier was awarded a scholarship to participate in the Spanish “Nao Victoria” National Project. During the project, he sailed around the world for two years and conducted research on nutrition and food science. Javier currently works for the “Escuela de Hosteleria de Sevilla”, teaching Nutrition and Food Chemistry at Pablo de Olavide University and has been an Associate Professor since 2009. 

Javier speaks Spanish, French, and English. His interests include travelling and understanding other cultures.

Traci Abraham

Traci Abraham was born in Michigan (USA). She attended the University of Connecticut where she earned her M.A. in Anthropology in 2002. The research for her thesis was The Samurai and the Cross: the Japón clan of Andalucía, Spain, an ethnohistory exploring the emigration of the first Japanese immigrants in Spain and ethnic identity among their descendants, based in Andalusia.

Traci was an instructor at the University of Connecticut and taught a course in socio-cultural anthropology. In 2003, Traci joined the research team for PHRESH.com (Philadelphia & Hartford Research & Education on Sexual Health and Communication), conducting ethnographic interviews with inner-city African American and Puerto Rican young adults concerning their sexual health and decision making regarding sex, relationships, and contraception. She earned her ABD in Anthropology in 2005, and immediately returned to Spain to complete fieldwork for her Ph.D. in Anthropology regarding attitudes in Andalusia toward immigration and immigrants, where she has remained since.

Traci speaks English and Spanish. She enjoys photography, skiing, cooking, and exploring Andalusia’s culture, past and present.

Dan Serradilla Avery

Dan Serradilla Avery was born in Seville and lived in the United States for 10 years. After finishing his Bachillerato in Seville, Dan pursued his undergraduate studies in both History (specializing in mediaeval history) and Anthropology (specializing in archaeology) at Illinois State University where he received a Bachelor of Arts. As an undergraduate, he was a teaching assistant for two years for the departments of History and Anthropology. He also completed studies in underwater archaeology at the Florida State University’s Underwater Archaeology program at Dog Island in 2000.

After graduating from college, Dan began working at the Internal Review Service. He realized that it wasn’t a career for him and began working for a non-profit organization, running an after-school program. The program was shut down and he decided to go back to school. He attended the University of St. Andrews and received a Master’s in Philosophy in Mediaeval History. His thesis was titled, Seville: between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, AD 1248-1492. In 2008, he received the ABD status after submitting a thesis, titled Urban Conflicts in the High Middle Ages, at the University of Pablo Olavide, where he has been teaching at the Centre for Foreign Students since the spring 2009.

Dan speaks Spanish, English, and has some basic knowledge of French. He enjoys origami, fishing, and scuba diving.

Ester Brenes

Ester Brenes teaches Spanish Grammar, Business Spanish, Phonetics, Pronunciation and History of Spanish Language. She has more than five years of experience in the field of Second Language Teaching. She has been teaching at the Universidad de Sevilla since 2006, and, at the same time, has collaborated with the School of Birkbeck College (University of London) and the University of Copenhagen.

Ester holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Spanish Language and Literature from the University of Seville and earned her Doctorate in Spanish Language at the Universidad de Sevilla and the University of London. She also holds an Master's Degree in the Teaching of Spanish as a Second Language from the Universidad de Sevilla.

She also has presented at more than 30 international conferences and has published two books (Actos de habla disentivos and Identificación y análisis) and several referenced articles in specialized journals of second language acquisition (i.e., Interrupción y (des)cortesía, Enseñanza y adquisición de las funciones estratégicas de la interrupción en las clases de L2).

Born in Seville, Ester enjoys and understands the traditions and way of life of rural Andalusia. She dedicates most of her spare time in travelling to the smallest  villages in Southern Spain to learn about the particularities of their language, customs, history, and, above all, their cuisine.

Elisa Trigo

Elisa Trigo is a professional photographer and has collaborated on teaching at the School of Fine Arts of the University of Seville and the Fundación Amalio, and has taught foreign students since 1998. Her personal philosophy:  Each one of us has the power to create his or her own world.

She earned her Master's Degree in Fine Arts in 1999. Currently, Ms. Trigo is working on her Doctorate under the title of Investigating Visual Intelligence. Her knowledge in arts includes painting, drawing, photography, and graphic and computer design.

Ms. Trigo loves to travel and has lived in Los Angeles and Düsseldorf. She's also visited Bangkok and Bali, and regularly travels to European cities such as Brussels,  Milan and Berlin, which she considers her second home. As a result, she's well-versed in the different cultural aspects of Visual Perception. Born in Seville, Ms. Trigo speaks Spanish, English and German. Apart from the arts, she loves composing music, singing, participating in sports, reading, writing and traveling.

Samuel Fernández Pichel

Samuel Fernandez Pichel has been teaching Spanish language, cultural studies and Spanish cinema courses since 2008 for the Centro Universitario Internacional at the University Pablo de Olavide. He previously worked for a study abroad organization in Seville, and after a short period, became the academic director. His duties included planning and assessing academic programs for high school and undergraduate students from Europe, the United States and Canada in different Spanish locations, including Seville, Barcelona, Cádiz and Toledo.

He currently is finishing his Doctorate in Communication Studies with a thesis on film and ideology in the Bush Era (2001-2009). Mr. Pichel completed his Master's Degree in Teaching Spanish as a Second and/or Foreign Language from the Universidad Antonio de Nebrija in Madrid. He received his Bachelor's Degree in English Language and Literature from the University of Seville. As part of his degree, he was awarded an Erasmus grant at the University of Sheffield (UK), where he was a teaching assistant for the Department of Spanish & Portuguese.

Mr. Pichel also holds a Master's Degree in Scriptwriting for Film and Television from the Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona, and was awarded the second prize for short novel at the 1995 Universidad de Sevilla Literary Awards. Born in Seville, he is fluent at Spanish and English. Among his main interests are film, writing and music.