Our Team

MEET OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

MARTIN LAFITTE, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Martin arrived in Denver in September 2015 to take over Philippe Marsé as Director of Alliance Française de Denver. After a BA in Japanese Studies in INALCO, Martin chose to specialize in teaching French as a Foreign Language and obtained a Master’s Degree of Didactics of French as a Foreign Language from the University Paris 7 Denis Diderot.

Bonjour ! I spent the last seven years working abroad in the education and cultural fields in various countries such as Japan or Jersey in the Channel Islands. I am now very excited to be for the first time in the USA and especially in such a beautiful place as Colorado! I am really delighted to take over Philippe’s position and take up the challenge of expanding the Francophonie and Francophilie in the Denver area. I am passionate about French language and culture, and can’t wait to share that with you! Don’t hesitate to come and meet me at our offices on Galapago Street. My door is always open!

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The Alliance Française de Denver is grateful to our dedicated supporters and advisors from the local business, academic and cultural community. Our Board of Trustees consists of both French and American members who are actively involved in AFD's growth. We thank you for your vision and your support!

Christophe Poulet, President
Linette Hayat, Vice President
Reynald Bodeux, Treasurer
Fritz Bart, Secretary
Michelle Benewitz, Fundraising Committee Chair

Joe Crystal, Building Committee Chair
Emma Glass, Marketing Committee Chair
Juliet Mann, Volunteer Committee Chair
Christian Roche, Cultural Outreach Committe Chair
Melissa Young, Strategic Planning Committee Chair

Danielle Badler, Board Member
Susan Fedel, Board Member
Catherine Bedard, Board Member
Liz Ward, Board Member
Catherine Potter, Board Member

Our Staff

SONJA BALDSTAD Office Manager

Although her background is in financial operations, Sonja has been studying French since junior high and is currently brushing up her skills by taking classes at the Alliance Française. Sonja has never met a salsa dip she didn't like!

MAGALI ECHENNE Administrative Assistant

Magali was born in the South of France. After completing an Associate Degree in secretarial work and a Bachelor Degree in English Studies, she studied two years in Nice and one year in Oslo Norway. After having met her husband who is American she moved to Denver one year ago.

NICOLE GROENKE Marketing and Development Coordinator

While earning her B.A. in French at the University of St. Thomas Nicole interned at the Alliance Francaise of Mpls/St Paul. She stayed involved as a volunteer and chair of the Programs Committee until she moved to Denver and found a new home at the AFD!

EMMANUELLE POURROY Education Coordinator and Teacher

France
Emmanuelle has taught French and humanities for over twenty years at universities east of the Mississippi, including Washington University, MO.
From the Lyon area in France, she has lived in Denver since 2015.

ZOÉ HOMMERTZHEIM Learning Programs and Teacher

Belgium
Zoé is a native French speaker and has created and managed her own language and music school in Kansas City in all levels for all ages. Zoé created Pluma Magazine an online and print publication for French learners.

Our Teachers

ANNE TIMMERMAN Teacher

France
Anne loves the arts. She studied Art History at the School of the Louvre and worked in the movie and TV industry for Canal Plus before moving to Canada and the United States.

ANTOINE ALAWOE Teacher

Togo
He has taught French at the AFD for 6 years and enjoys helping those achieve literacy. Before the AFD, he lived in Paris teaching high school science and mathematics.

JEAN-CLAUDE HOUNOU Teacher

Togo
Jean-Claude likes going to the movies, traveling and watching soccer. He has been teaching French for 27 years (12 years at the AFD) and truly enjoys sharing Francophonie with others.

BLANDINE MACLEAN Teacher

France
Blandine graduated in sciences in London (UK) where she also trained to become a French teacher. She says: “More than anything else, what I am trying to convey in my classes is the love of learning.

CÉLINE LÉVESQUE Teacher

Canada
Céline’s passion is teaching French, which she has been doing for 15 years. She values a good rapport with her students and listening to their needs.

CHRISTIAN DALLET Teacher

France
Christian has taught science and French to junior high school students. He enjoys teaching French at the Alliance Française de Denver.

CLAUDIA LEWIS Teacher (Centennial)

Colombia
Claudia’s professional focus has been in the field of environmental education. She has taught French and Spanish for many years. She teaches adult classes in Centennial.

BETHANY KAZAKEVICIUS Teacher

USA
Bethany studied in Brussels and worked in Europe as an English assistant. She received a bilingual MA in diplomacy and conflict resolution from the U. Catholique de Louvain, Belgium.

FRANÇOISE BRES-GUDE Teacher

France
Françoise has taught French in Paris to business students and foreigners from all over the world. She also leads group tours in France for American artists every summer.

HÉLÈNE NORTH Teacher (Evergreen)

France
Hélène has taught French and English in France, Great Britain, the U.S., and China. She was the head of Denver Int’l School and taught at the Evergreen Montessori Middle School for 15 years.

LISE ROUSSIN Private Teacher (Boulder)

Canada
Lise has taught French at the Alliance Française de Denver since 1998. She now only teaches private classes in the Boulder area and loves what she does.

ISABELLE MARQUES Private Teacher

France
Isabelle started her career as an elementary school teacher in northeast France. She taught French at the Denver International School for almost all grade levels.

LUIGINA CERRI Teacher (Boulder)

Italy
Luigina holds a Master’s degree and has been teaching both French & Italian in various schools & universities across the Front Range including CSU, UNC, and the University of Denver. She has also studied in Bordeaux, Avignon, and Carcassonne, France.

JULIE WHITNEY Teacher

Belgium

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STÉPHANIE TURNER Private Teacher only

USA
Stephanie teaches French and English. She spent two fabulous years living in Nice and Dijon. When not teaching French, she plays with her poodle Mac and teaches yoga.

EDWIGE WAGNER Teacher (Boulder)

France

Edwige has an Applied Foreign Languages degree in English and Spanish from The Sorbonne Nouvelle de Paris and a Business degree from the Paris European Business School. She has been teaching at AFD since 2013.

WHAT OUR MEMBERS ARE SAYING

"Great classes, great events, great people."

Brenda Nesbitt

"What an awesome place to meet people who enjoy French Culture! I have never seen so many people from different countries get together at Alliance Française for the World Cup Final! Everyone was welcome and had a blast, thanks to the director Martin Lafitte!"

Kevin Gael Thomas

“Anne is fantastic! The material is fast paced for this ‘old dog’ to learn new tricks, but we couldn’t go slower. It’s been very helpful to prepare me for my trip to France.”

Sue T.

“A great place to learn and practice French while getting acquainted with French culture and interesting people. I definitely recommend AFD and their events. Je parle français! Et vous?”

Cristina G.

Our Team

MEET OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

MARTIN LAFITTE, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Our Staff

Our Teachers

WHAT OUR MEMBERS ARE SAYING

DENVER MAIN OFFICE

BOULDER CLASSES

EVERGREEN CLASSES

CENTENNIAL CLASSES

PARKER CLASSES

BUSINESS HOURS (DENVER)

MEDIA INQUERIES

VOLUNTEER

GENERAL INFO

CONTACT US

Our Team

MEET OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

MARTIN LAFITTE, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Our Staff

Our Teachers

WHAT OUR MEMBERS ARE SAYING

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER

DENVER MAIN OFFICE

BOULDER CLASSES

EVERGREEN CLASSES

CENTENNIAL CLASSES

PARKER CLASSES

BUSINESS HOURS (DENVER)

MEDIA INQUERIES

VOLUNTEER

GENERAL INFO

CONTACT US