A native to Eugene, Oregon, and the daughter of two teachers, Haley finds her foundation of family and friends throughout the Northwest. After graduating from high school in Eugene, Haley moved to Seattle, Washington to attend Seattle University and begin studying psychology. Throughout her studies she worked with a number of children's educational services including Children's Literacy Project, where she tutored 4th graders, and University Baptist Children's Center, where she was an assistant preschool teacher. Haley also volunteered as an ESL teacher's aid for Downtown Languages in Eugene, Oregon. During her junior year, she studied Spanish at the Centro de Lenguas Modernas at the Universidad de Granada, Spain, thus adding Spanish as her second major. After graduating from SU in 2006, Haley's short vacation to Costa Rica turned into a year long stay in Pavones. She became active in the community by teaching evening English classes for all ages, offering private English tutoring, and helping to set up the bilingual library at the local school. These activities opened up many possibilities for Haley's future, most specifically resurfacing a passion for teaching. Other interests include traveling throughout the world, experiencing the outdoors, surfing, being healthy, and enjoying the pura vida lifestyle! Haley is eager to be a founding part of Escuela Camino Claro.

With more than five years experience as an ESL educator, tutor and mentor, Raphel Weber is excited to be a founding member of Escuela Camino Claro. Raphel's interest in education, focusing on primary school-aged ESL students, began as an undergraduate at Seattle University in 2002. It was during her studies that she began to work for Seattle's non-profit ESL Youth Tutoring Programs as a staff member and head tutor for two years. The following year Raphel's academic interests took her to Granada, Spain, where she studied Spanish at the Universidad de Granada's Centro de Lenguas Modernas. Raphel subsequently moved to Madrid, Spain where she worked as an English teacher at the Booklane Academy while continuing her Spanish language studies at the Universidad de Complutense. Upon her return from Spain, Raphel worked in Seattle's public school system as an ESL reading teacher. She also spent several months in Riobamba, Ecuador working as an intern on an international development project in the Central Andes. Now that she has completed her undergraduate degree, Raphel is excited to use her knowledge and experience to work with the community of Pavones, Costa Rica. Other interests include laughing, traveling, and enjoying an active and relatively healthy lifestyle (with unfortunate and regular overdoses of sugar)!

Lisa Thrash and her family - her husband and two children, ages four and ten - are full-time residents of Pavones, having finally realized a life-long dream of living a sustainable life in a small community. Lisa began as an ECC parent in 2006 and has now stepped into the roll as bilingual Pre-Kinder and Kindergarten teacher. Lisa, a missionary's daughter with a passion for volunteering, has been teaching and having fun with children since she was 14 years old, whether it was tutoring elementary students after school, being a Spanish instructor in the Florida public school systems, or acting as P.T.O president at her children's grade schools. More recently, she has become intricately involved in home schooling both of her young children. Lisa enjoys reading, history, nature, dancing, traveling, photography, animals, and hanging out with family and says "I feel lucky to be part of the community of Pavones and be part of the group effort in preserving it for future generations."

Gerardo, a native to Pavones, Costa Rica, is an excellent addition to Escuela Camino Claro's team. Gerardo attended the area's local schools and, upon graduating from Colegio Comte, enrolled in the Universidad Latina de Costa Rica in Paso Canoas. He finished his bachelor degree for teaching English and is currently obtaining his Licenciatura, or Masters Degree. Gerardo's teaching experience is expansive, with three years working in the local public schools and teaching his practicum at Colegio Comte. He has also worked directly in Pavones and its surrounding communities by offering private courses in English and Spanish. Gerardo's interest in traveling was inspired by his 8-month trip to the United States in 2006 to study the culture. In the future, he says, he hopes to learn more languages, continue teaching, and work in educational administration.

Jacob was born and raised around Seattle, Washington. Jacob received a Bachelor Degree in Environmental Studies from Seattle University in 2008. During and after his studies at SU, he discovered a passion for community development and youth environmental education, becoming increasingly concerned for the health of the world's social and ecological environment. This led him to become involved in many non-profit organizations, most of which concentrate on youth education. He has volunteered as a teacher and a documentary photographer for Seattle Tilth, the Seattle Arboretum, Bridges to Understanding, and Helping Link. Jacob also worked with Divertigranja, a sustainable animal farm in Oaxaca, Mexico, for several months and spent a month working with Tram Chim National Park in Vietnam. Most recently, he began studying Spanish and teaching English at the Seattle Refugee Women's Alliance. He says his travels through the South Pacific, Southeast Asia, and Latin America have been invaluable and he is excited to work with the community of Pavones. He spends his free time with family, friends, and fútbol.