Biography

Mafalda is a native of Argentina and she has been living and leaching Spanish, and English as a Second Language in the United States and abroad. She holds advanced degrees from the Universidad Nacional de Cuyo, in Mendoza Argentina, and from the University of Rhode Island. At URI she teaches two sections of Intermediate Level Spanish.

Furthermore, she believes that language learning occurs best when students are immersed in the culture. So, during her tenure at her previous school, she implemented a Spanish Immersion Program that enabled students to spend 10 days sailing around Puerto Rico in order to give them hands on experience of the Spanish language and culture.

Outside of school, she is very active with the AATSP, (American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese), where she has served as R.I. Chapter President, and until last year, as National Spanish Exam Coordinator. The main goal of the local chapter is to support and reward the efforts of the Spanish teachers and their students in the State. She is also a member of RIFLA (Rhode Island Foreign Language Teachers’ Association) and has been a presenter at their Annual Conference on several occasions.

In 2010 she received the Rhode Island Language Teacher of the Year Award.

She lives in Newport with her husband and loves to travel and play with her six grandchildren.