By Raúl Gavarrette O.
The former Spanish school located in Laguna de Apoyo managed lately by Jeffrey McCrary got apart from its former financial partner and founder Dr. McKaye in 2009, and continued the programs by himself in another location right next to the former Spanish school Proyecto Ecológico site. McKaye family returned from the United States to Laguna de Apoyo, Nicaragua in 2011 and re-launched the language school under a new name called Laguna de Apoyo Spanish School and Cultural Center. This new Spanish school in Laguna de Apoyo was managed by enthusiastic and dynamic Donaldo Silva, a former Spanish teacher in Apoyo School.
Former original Nicaragua Spanish Schools led by Paul Martin reopened programs in Managua early 2011 with no much success as it was in the late 90´s and then soon closed. Other Spanish language schools organized in Estelí and Managua in previous years: 1985, Spanish language program in the language department at Central America University UCA; 1991 Centro Lingüístico Cultural Tenotzaní managed by Ruth Jarquín and Ileana Tiffer former Spanish teachers in Casa del Español in the 80´s. This Managua Spanish school closed in 2000.
A new Spanish school in Estelí opened in 1997 as CENAC (Centro Nicaragüense de Aprendizaje) as well as Los Pipitos Sacuanjoche in 1997. Other schools opened: Escuela Viva in Managua 2007, Mi Futuro Spanish School 2007 in Conquista, Carazo; Spanish school Casa Escuela Rosa Silva in Ometepe Island 2009; all of these new schools closed in following years. In 2010 other schools opened: Sol Spanish School in Granada whose Director was former NSS Sandra Espinoza Madrigal; Spanish Lingua in Granada in 2010; Spanish Dale founded in 2014 in Granada; Spanish School La Gran Manquesa in Masaya also opened in 2016. The new tendency among the Spanish school’s industry in Nicaragua from 2014 to 2018, was to unify programs together to offer more than one destination, an original idea and system first developed by former NSS network called TransNica program. That is how some of the schools set up a policy of alliance among Spanish schools under the concept of Schools partnership to offer multiple destinations.
That was a good sign of understanding and respect of the new Spanish schools Directors who had to learn and recognize that everyone has the right to open their own School as a business keeping ethic, respect, professionalism and quality without spoiling the market. Due to the decrease in the number of visitors and students to Nicaragua, and the economic situation in the country in 2018, the alliance among the schools came to end. That fact affected the Spanish school industry specially in Granada, León and San Juan del Sur where some of the Spanish schools closed permanently. The ones that are still open are offering varied programs in their cities. Most of them are offering lessons only. The exception is Instituto Lingüístico Inter-Cultural in Granada, which still offers all included immersion programs.
