Spanish School Sol Latino

The Spanish School, "Sol Latino," was founded by two Guatemalans and one of their wives, who is from Holland: Irwin Rosal is the General Director; Miguel Rosal, is the Administrative Director; and Rineke van Rij is the International Coordinator. Irwin and Miguel have many years of experience teaching the Spanish language to foreigners and combined they have completed the following courses: the Diploma for Spanish Grammar and National Culture, Diploma in Teaching Spanish as a Second Language to Foreigners, Guatemalan Tourist Guide, Diploma in Business, and a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration. Rineke came to Guatemala in 2003 to do volunteer work; during this time she had the opportunity to work in various social projects. She has completed various administrative and coordination jobs in Holland and Guatemala. A few years ago, Irwin and Rineke met in Quetzaltenango, and now they are happily married and have a beautiful daughter. Through all of these experiences and studies, the founders of "Sol Latino" have developed a high level of professionalism, providing the student with a friendly and specialized service. In addition, over the course of our lives, through our own experience of living in a society that lacks so many essential things, and having seen the effects of a society without access to resources, as do the majority of people in Guatemala, and with such a small amount of help, we have developed a strong social conscience. Unfortunately in Guatemala, as is the case in many countries, the wealth is distributed unequally: a small minority hold the majority of wealth and economic power to purchase land, start businesses, schools, organizations, etc. with the purpose of making themselves more wealthy. This was one of the principle reasons we founded "Sol Latino," because the school is an ideal means to make a positive change in this existing structure: benefiting better teachers, families, guides, artisans and social projects. In addition, we want our school's work to be a ripple, creating a positive wave that can reach further and influence change in a more just and equal system. One of our future goals is to start our own social project with the objective of helping the most unprotected and vulnerable part of the Guatemalan population; generally these are children who live on the streets, in garbage dumps. We would like to offer them a home, food, clothing, education, and above all, transmit to them the love of God. Among our principle purposes we strive to: *Provide students with the highest quality, complete immersion program in the Spanish language and Latin culture. In only a couple of years we have surpassed other schools to become a leader in Guatemala. *Give our teachers, families, and artisans better benefits, and help the most needy part of the Guatemalan population, through contributions to different social organizations both physically and economically.