Who We Are

We are glad you are here to find out a bit more about life at the Academia Latinoamericana de Español and, more importantly, to find out about life in this beautiful and mysterious part of the world.

At the Academia Latinoamericana de Español you can study Spanish in the heart of the ancient Inca Empire in Quito, Ecuador, Cusco, Peru, and Sucre, Bolivia. It is an excellent program for those who wish to quickly develop a working knowledge of Spanish and also to learn about the culture and customs of these fascinating Andean countries. Read on to discover the exciting opportunities for study and travel with the Academia Latinoamericana de Español.

One of the important features of the Academia experience is that, unlike other study abroad programs which require some degree of fluency, students with little or no Spanish may enroll and study for as long as time permits. With our excellent testing program students are placed in classes at their exact level of ability. Weekly evaluations enable students to move through their weekly classes in such a way that they are continually challenged but not frustrated by being slightly ahead or slightly behind their classmates. The number of participants in any class is never more than five, and is frequently less. Students move in and out of classes on a weekly basis depending on their ability and their motivation for outside study. Our teachers are all native Spanish speakers who have received extensive training in teaching their language to adult learners.

The Academia is proud to announce an exciting new development in the field of international education. We are now a University! This is a giant step forward for Academia Latinoamericana students as it offers a unique opportunity for studies in Business Administration, Environmental Studies, Entrepreneurial Development, English as a Second Language, and general Liberal Arts Studies including coursework in History, Indigenous Culture, Medical Vocabulary and more. Service Learning, Internships, North American university credits and custom programs on a year-round basis will continue as before.

The roster of academic leadership of the Academia-University is:

Founders:  Carlos del Corral and Rosita Ortiz de del Corral. (+)

Patty de Ribadeneira, Director of the Quito, Ecuador campus.

Maike Mariscal, Director of the Cusco, Peru campus.

Sandra de Maldonado, Director of the Sucre, Bolivia campus.

They are the Directors of the Academia Latinoamericana in each country and every student returns to their homeland filled with the warmth and the caring of their beautiful smiles.

Santiago Ribadeneira, Financial Director of the Academia Latinoamericana – Equatorialis University.

Paola Medina, Javier Cornejo and Juana Flores, Tourism Coordinators

Suzanne S. Bell, Admissions Director for the Academia Latinoamericana in the United States. 

Diego del Corral, President of the Academia Latinoamericana de Español – Equatorialis University in Ecuador.

Alfredo Paredes, current Dean of Business Administration, and former Dean of Catholic University;

Xavier Bustamante, the current President of Fundacion Natura, which oversees Galapagos Islands National Park, Cuyabeno Rainforest reserve, Quito city waste management, and Pasachoa Mountain Preserve;

Ivan Rubio, the current Director of Corporate Developement/Management/Marketing of Alpha College;

Miriam de Vergara, the current Dean of Pedagogy and Director of Academic and Student Associations of Catholic University.

The Academia Latinoamericana – Equatorialis University is a privately owned non-profit university, under the Alpha Foundation for the Promotion of Education, Culture and Knowledge of Quito, Ecuador.

We are registered and recognized by the Ecuadorian government. In the United States it would be similar to a 501.c3 designation. This allows corporations, individuals and other organizations to donate to us, knowing that we will provide education benefits and instruction in return. As a non-profit, we are able to reinvest income to future development and benefit of all our Ecuadorian and international students.