By Raúl Gavarrette O.
Almost at the end of the 90´s Nicaragua experienced a tourist boom and became the hottest and most popular destination for tourism in Central America, motivating not only potential tourists but entrepreneurs from North America.
In 1997, a new language school Project started in Nicaragua led by Paul Martin from the United States and Professor Raúl Gavarrette, the Nicaraguan representative and Executive Coordinator. This project was called Nicaragua Spanish Schools (NSS). Since the beginning NSS intended to be an international agency to represent and market the already established Nicaraguan Spanish schools in Estelí, Managua, Granada and Laguna de Apoyo. NSS agreed with the Spanish schools to open an office in the United States and a branch in Nicaragua to represent them.
Due to many facts this enterprise was unsuccessfull and later on, the NSS team decided to open their own Spanish language schools in San Juan del Sur, Granada and León. That is when in 1997 they started the first Spanish language school in lovely San Juan del Sur in. The language school was named San Juan del Sur Spanish School. Since that same year, professor Raul Gavarrette, NSS Executive National Coordinator started continuous training workshops in administration and management of the school, excursions arrangement, and language teaching techniques workshops of Spanish as a second language for the first wave of students arriving in January 1998. NSS network opened a new school named the Palacio de Cultura Spanish School in Granada, the colonial city.
In early 1999 NSS executive and international team decided to open a new Spanish school in León, situated on the North West of the country. That Spanish school was named Leonesa Spanish School and used the Casa de Cultura location, that was the first Spanish language school in León. The following years after foundation, were successful for all the Nicaragua Spanish Schools network. The number of instructors increased as lots of students came.
In 2006, the NSS network, after many years of being the strongest language program in Nicaragua disbanded, due to many intern conflicts with their massive instructors who wanted somehow independence and wanted to start their own business in the Spanish school new industry. That was the origin of all the spinoff schools in Granada, San Juan del Sur, and Leon.
The former instructors of Leonesa Spanish School founded the spinoff Dariana Spanish School, and Metropolitana Spanish School. Almost everywhere in San Juan del Sur, Granada, León and Estelí the same phenomenon occurred and new Spanish schools emerged. Every single of the former Spanish instructors wanted to have their own Spanish school as they saw business opportunities in this industry. León was the exception and there were only two branched out schools. One independent school, named Hijos del Maíz, which was never part of the former NSS network, opened in El Lagartillo rural community in Achuapa town, León. There are not dates found when this school opened.
At present it seems that the strong Spanish school’s boom of the 90´s in Nicaragua has seriously decreased and come to a stage where some of the owners have decided to find other ways to do trading and considered closing schools. International high price of oil has caused an increasement of flights ticket cost, and it is one of the facts for which a few travelers are coming to not only Nicaragua but other countries in Central America. No new schools have opened in Nicaragua since 2022. At the date of posting this information, these are the Spanish language schools currently opened in León.
LIST OF CURRENT SPANISH SCHOOLS OPERATING IN LEÓN:
LEÓN, DOWNTOWN
Metrópolis School
ACHUAPA, LEÓN
Hijos del Maíz Spanish School (in Lagartillo Community)
