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Chinni Mancilla, Owner & Director of Operations
Hola! Salut! Ni Hao! My name is Chinni and I have been the very proud owner of The Language Labs for the last six years. I was born in California, but raised in Venezuela. My father is from Spain and my mother is from Venezuela. While we always spoke Spanish at home, my parents taught me how important it is to try to speak different languages and absorb diverse cultures. We traveled and moved quite frequently so I chose a career that permitted me to practice my language skills, follow my passion for traveling and continue to learn about different countries and cultures. I became a Flight Attendant and flew happily around the world for almost 10 years. During my travels, I had the wonderful opportunity to live in the French part of Switzerland where I became fluent in French. I am a Certified Medical/Educational Interpreter and own an Interpreting Agency - which all falls under the The Language Labs umbrella. Spanish is a very happy language, and this is what we try to instill in our classrooms while teaching. Introducing the children to salsa music, singing Spanish songs, having the children create their own presentation of their favorite hobby or a different Spanish speaking country. This is all part of making Spanish an enjoyable learning process to encourage learning, and the children hone the skills needed for eventual language fluency. Conversation skills are my top priority. There is nothing better than seeing a student's happy face of accomplishment when they have mastered vocabulary or a complete phrase in Spanish! Gracias! Merci! Xie Xie! |
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Alma Ascencio, TLL Principal Consultant
¡ Hola Familias! My name is Alma Ascencio and I was born and raised in Veracruz, Mexico, where I graduated as a social worker. In 1988, I moved to Chicago and later got married in 1996. A year later, my husband and I had a son who we have raised bilingual. I believe that being bilingual opens a world of opportunities and enriches minds. A few years after my son was born, I discovered that my passion is working with children. I have been working and teaching Spanish since 2000, instructing at a diverse array of schools. My experience has taken me to teach in Public, Private, Catholic and Montessori Schools. I am very proud of my heritage, and I'm very happy that I have the opportunity to share my language, customs and culture with all your children. |
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Nathali Chacon, TLL Spanish Teacher
Hello everyone, it makes me very happy to be able to introduce myself to you and tell you a little about myself. I am Nathali, I am from Venezuela, I am a dentist, and I have always really enjoyed working with children, for me this is a wonderful opportunity to be able to teach them my native language. I hope to teach and guide you in the incredible world of Spanish. Sra. Nathali |
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Andreina Guerra, TLL Training Specialist & Advisor
Hello everyone! I'm Andreina, I am from Venezuela and I take great pride in being a Spanish teacher. From a young age, I discovered my passion for language and teaching, and today, I can confidently say that children are a balm in my life. Every day, as I step into the classroom, I am surrounded by infectious energy and enthusiasm. Witnessing my young students learn and grow in their command of Spanish is truly rewarding. Their innate curiosity and ability to absorb knowledge constantly inspire me. I believe that education is a powerful tool for shaping the future of our youth. I strive to create a fun and stimulating learning environment where my students feel safe to express themselves and make mistakes. My goal is to foster their love for Spanish and their desire to explore new cultures through the language. Beyond teaching grammar and vocabulary, I aim to awaken creativity and critical thinking in my students. I love incorporating games, interactive activities, and visual resources to keep their interest and make learning memorable. My greatest reward as a teacher is witnessing my students gain confidence in their language skills and feel empowered to communicate in Spanish. As we embark on this exciting journey together, I not only teach them but also learn from them. Children truly bring joy to my life, and I feel fortunate to have the opportunity to positively impact them. I am thrilled to embark every year and continue nurturing the passion for Spanish in the minds and hearts of my dear students. I am ready to share laughter, discoveries, and successes with all of you on our wonderful learning journey together. Señora Andreina |
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Laura Gutierrez, TLL Spanish Teacher
¡Hola! My name is Laura Gutierrez, I was born and raised in Mexico City and received my Business Administration degree from the University of Valle de Mexico. My husband is a sugar trader and his company transferred us to the United States 14 years ago and since then, Naperville has been our home. I have two children; my daughter is studying Criminal Justice in New York City and my son is a Junior in High School. I am very passionate about my culture, language, and traditions. For this reason, I am so excited to share my native language with your children and be a part of their bilingual development. Through games, songs and videos I hope to provide your children a learning experience that will enhance their Spanish knowledge and I will strive to offer fun but educational classes each lesson. ¡Gracias! |
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Veronica Juarez, TLL Spanish Teacher¡Hola! I was born and raised in Mexico. I received my business administration degree from the University of San Luis Potosi. In 2006, my husband received a job offer and we were relocated to the United States. For the past 12 years, I have been teaching Spanish in various Child Care Centers. I am also a Spanish Tutor. I participate in most of the events in my church, scholar district and the community in general with my family. I have two daughters graduated from the University of Iowa and a son in college. It is a huge pleasure to transmit my Hispanic-Mexican culture to my classes and to your students.
!Muchas Gracias! |
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María José Mendez, TLL Spanish Teacher
Dear parents, My name is María José Mendez and I have the pleasure of introducing myself. I want to start by sharing a little about myself. I am originally from Venezuela and my native language is Spanish. Two years ago I had the opportunity to move to this beautiful country and since then I have been working as a Spanish teacher. I feel very lucky to be able to share my passion for the Hispanic language and culture with your children. In addition to my experience as a teacher, I am a Venezuelan doctor and I am also a proud wife and mother of two beautiful children. In my free time, I enjoy spending time with my family and we also have two adorable dogs that fill us with joy. My focus in the classroom is to create a positive and motivating learning environment, where your children feel comfortable and safe expressing themselves in Spanish. My goal is to foster a love for the language and help them develop their language skills in a fun and effective way. I appreciate your trust in allowing me to be part of your children's education. I am sure thattogether we will make great progress in their learning of Spanish. Saludos cordiales Señora María |
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Alejandra Osorio, TLL Curriculum Developer & Consultant
¡Hola amigos! I’m very happy and proud to being part of The Language Labs Family. This is my Tenth year as an educator in the States (but my 19th year teaching a foreign language). In 2003, I received my Bachelor’s Degree in Teaching of French at the University of The State of Morelos, in my country, Mexico. I have been the creator and author for the Spanish and French books since 2019. My love for teaching and my patience to better understand my students has given me the opportunity to also learn from them every day. I am committed to creating an inclusive classroom environment that encourages students to express themselves freely while improving their language skills through lots of games and fun activities. I can’t wait to see the happy faces in the classroom! ¡Hasta Pronto! Señora Alejandra |
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Ivelisse Rodriguez, TLL Spanish Teacher
I am originally from the beautiful island of Puerto Rico and received my bachelor’s degree in English Secondary Education from Antillean Adventist University. I worked as an ESL elementary and middle school teacher in the public school system (School District 100, South Berwyn) and also taught Spanish and preschool at Downers Grove Christian School. Additionally, I am a trained interpreter with 12 years of experience in educational and medical settings. I am excited to teach children the wonderful language of Spanish and to create a classroom that is both educational and fun. I look forward to a wonderful school year! |
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Yoliver Rodríguez, TLL Spanish Teacher
I was born and raised in Caracas Venezuela. Where I completed my studies as a phoniatric doctor specializing in language pathologies, hearing, learning and everything related to human communication. It was while I was studying that I developed a passion for helping children develop their abilities to the maximum, to teach them that through games and fun learning activities, an infinite world of opportunities opens up for them that they can take advantage of in the future and it will become a of its greatest strengths. I love being able to teach my native language and seeing how children convert it into their second language generates indescribable joy in me. Filling them with laughter while they learn and making them see that being bilingual will be their superpower is my personal goal. Mi nombre es Yoliver Rodríguez, nací y me crié en Caracas Venezuela. Donde logré mis estudios como Médico foniatra especialista en patologías del lenguaje, audicion, aprendizaje y todo lo relacionado con la comunicación humana. Fue mientras estudiaba que desarrollé la pasión por ayudar a los niños a desarrollar sus habilidades al máximo, a enseñarles que a través de juegos y actividades de aprendizaje divertidas se les apertura un mundo infinito de oportunidades que podrán aprovechar en el futuro y se convertirá en una de sus mayores fortalezas. Me encanta poder enseñar mi lengua materna y ver como los niños la convierten en su segunda lengua genera en mí una alegría indescriptible. Llenarlos de risas mientras aprenden y hacerles ver que ser bilingües será su superpoder es mi meta personal. |
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Peggy Laparra, TLL French Teacher
Bonjour! My name is Peggy. I am French, I was born in Normandy, France. In addition to being a native French speaker, I have French as Second Language Certificate, this is an International diploma recognized to teach English as a foreign language. I also own a Master Degree in Business Administration. I lived in Paris for 14 years where I was working as a Training development manager before relocating to the US in 2012. I have been living in Naperville since 2012 with my family. I teach French in the Naperville area. I work as a French teacher and head of curriculum in a French school for native French students. I started teaching with The Language Labs in 2019 for several classes in different elementary schools, providing French tutoring and animating story times. I love to teach my native language. I feel very proud when my students are making steady progress and start actually communicating in French. I love sharing the French culture with well-known stories or songs from my childhood. I like being creative when working on craft projects that I know my students will enjoy. À bientôt! See you soon! |
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Julia Yun Hsia (Hsia Lao Shi), TLL Mandarin Teacher
Nihao! My name is Julia Yun Hsia, and I am from Taiwan. My family and I moved to the United States in 1984 when I was fourteen. As a shy eighth grader who did not speak English well, I took on learning as a way of life and came out of my comfort zone by talking without fear. I graduated from Illinois State University with a degree in Graphic Communications and started working as a graphic production artist in the commercial printing industry. At the same time, I started teaching at Chinese schools and enjoyed sharing my Chinese Language and cultural knowledge with the students. I started working with The Language Labs in 2021 and have connected with many students through story time at the libraries, after-school language club programs, and private tutoring lessons—my students' age range from pre-K to adults. I offer a supportive learning environment where students feel safe and build confidence while having fun with learning. Watching the joy they experience and the progress my students make is why I teach. I'm looking forward to talking with you. Xiexie! |
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Peggy Lee (Huang Lao Shi), TLL Mandarin Teacher Ni Hao! My name is Peggy Lee. I was born and raised in Taiwan. I received my bachelor’s degree in Public Administration in Taiwan, and I immigrated to the United States in the year of 2005. I got my Montessori Early Childhood teaching certificate in 2009. Since then, I have consistently worked as a Chinese teacher. I have been with TLL since 2018 and have really enjoyed being a part of such a welcoming and positive environment. My husband and I have two kids aged 16 and 18 who are fluent in Chinese. I am passionate about teaching. Teaching for me means transferring knowledge with love. It is about getting students to be happy learning and studying. I am responsible, creative, and love bringing my enthusiasm and energy to class. Xie Xie! |
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Joselyn Regueiro - TLL Social Media Director
¡Hola! I was born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela. I came to Chicago in May 1997. I have a bachelor degree in Computer Science and more than 25 years of experience in IT, currently working as Data Analyst. I’m also the owner of Josy’s Photo Creation, LLC and photographer. I have been working with the Language Labs since December 2022, helping with the social media accounts and promotion of events and activities. I am very happy to be able to help The Language Labs, and be part of this great team. My goal is that more people get to know TLL and the wonderful job they do teaching kids, supporting the parents and helping the community. As a Spanish speaker, I can witness the importance of being bilingual and be proud of it. ¡Muchas Gracias! |
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Sonia Mani - TLL Operations Manager
Hi! My name is Sonia, and I am so happy to join The Language Labs Administrative Team! I graduated from Northern Illinois University with a bachelor’s degree in Operations Management and Information Systems. I spent a couple years consulting at Accenture applying my IT skills within the Products Department with clients, such as Pfizer, UPS, and Best Buy. And while I took a break from the workforce to have 2 wonderful children, now ages 15 and 12, and adopted by the most loyal pup in the world, LUNA 😊, I started my own portrait photography business, House of Sonia Photography. I constantly explore various disciplines to broaden my own artistic pursuits, integrating my interest in fine art. And now I love to develop my marketing ideas through creative thinking and applying it to promote The Language Labs. I am so happy to join the team and love creating and managing digital content for The Language Labs and help build its brand, existing relationships for the organization, and the love of learning languages. Again, I enjoy using my skills to contribute to the exciting advances in promoting learning a second language by The Language Labs! |
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