The National Spanish Exam

A Division of AATSP

National Office:

900 Ladd Road
Walled Lake, MI 48390
(248) 960-2027

AFFILIATES:

AATSP

Sociedad Honoraria Hispanica

Our Study Abroad Partner

Our Awards Partner

Approved for Listing Student Contests & Activities 2006-007

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National Spanish Examinations

Kevin Cessna-Buscemi

Director, National Spanish Examinations

Kevin Cessna-Buscemi is the Director of the NSE. Growing up in an Italian-American family in culturally and linguistically diverse Gary, Indiana, he attributes his early interest in modern languages and cultures to his Sicilian grandfather who inspired him to learn Italian and his Uruguayan godmother who motivated him to learn Spanish. Kevin holds a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration from Indiana University and a Master's Degree from Purdue University with Spanish coursework from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. He has authored several articles and conducted many seminars of language teaching, learning and testing. In addition to his duties with the National Spanish Examinations, Kevin also serves as the Coordinator of Curriculum Development and Assessment for the Valparaiso Community Schools in Valparaiso, IN.

Director of Test Administration

STANA SUKUNDA joined the NSE staff in September 2006. She holds a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts from Wayne State University. She teaches Hispanic Film, Spanish Peninsular Literature, and Introduction to Translation courses and classes at all levels of Spanish language at the University of Michigan-Dearborn. Since 1991 she has coordinated the Spanish area's Summer Program in Spanish at the Institute of International Studies in Valencia, Spain. Stana serves as one of the faculty advisors for students enrolled in the College of Arts, Sciences, and Literatures.

Writer

TERRI HENRY is one of the writers of the National Spanish Exam and lives in Wayne, New Jersey. She has a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in Spanish from Indiana State University. She currently teaches Spanish at Ramapo High School in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey as well as at William Paterson University in Wayne, New Jersey.

Writer

KEN STEWART currently teaches Spanish IV and AP Spanish Language at Chapel Hill High School in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Having studied in Seville and Salamanca, Spain, he is a graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill with degrees in International Studies and Spanish. In addition to his work for NSE, Ken is the Spanish content editor for AP Central, an AP reader, table leader, and a College Board national consultant. He is the author of The Golden Age Art of Spain, Spanish Flip-O-Matic Vocabulary and Lazarillo de Tormes: A Kaplan Spanish Language Vocabulary-building novel. Ken has traveled throughout Europe and Latin America, most recently studying in Salvador da Bahia, Brazil. Ken has received many awards for his contribution to the profession: Teacher of the Year by North Carolina Chapter of the AATSP, the Central North Carolina Teacher of the Year by the State of NC, Foreign Language Teacher of the Year by FLANC, Regional Teacher of the Year by SCOLT (Southern Conference on Language Teaching), and ACTFL National Foreign Language Teacher of Year.

Writer

Robert Céspedes has been a language teacher for many years. He has a Bachelor’s of Science in Secondary Education with an emphasis in Spanish from Indiana University. He has created and taught a Latin American cultural class, designed for the middle school level. Prior to his current position , he taught at a prestigious university in Per? South America, La Universidad de Piura. He also taught English at a language institute, El Instituto Cultural Peruano-Norteamericano. Currently, he is a Spanish teacher in the International Baccalaureate program at Valparaiso High School in Valparaiso, IN.

Director of Junior Travel Awards

Writer

Jamise Kafoure is from Indianapolis, Indiana. She holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Spanish and French and a Master's Degree in Education from Indiana State University and a Master's Degree in Counseling Education from Butler University. She taught Spanish and French for several years in the Indianapolis Public School and was a Senior Lecturer in Spanish for six years at Butler University where she initiated and directed the Guadalajara Study Tour in Mexico for Spanish students. In addition to her responsibilities as a Writer for National Spanish Exams, Jamise also serves as a Reader for the Spanish AP Exam. Jamise currently teaches Spanish at Lawrence Central High School in Indianapolis as well at at Indiana University Purdue University at Indianapolis (IUPUI).

Primary Reviewer

Mirtha Toledo was born in Cuba, and came to the U.S. in 1960. In Cuba she studied at Villanova University where she obtained her doctorate degree of Law. In the States, she obtained her B.A. and Master's degree from Indiana State University. She worked on her PhD at Indiana University with a major in Peninsular Literature and a minor in Latin American History. In 1964, she started teaching at Valparaiso University in Indiana. After 36 years of teaching, she retired in 2000 as Emerita Professor. For the past nine years, she has been the primary reviewer and editor of the National Spanish Exams. She has been very active in AATSP, serving as a member of the Executive Council for three years and working on several committees.