About Us

OUR PHILOSOPHY

We believe that the steps to successfully learning a new foreign language are much the same for every student, while the path to learning is highly individualized. With that in mind, ABC instructors have the freedom to address each group’s needs and learning patterns so that, while following a logical progression, each class goes at a pace that works for you, the students.

We also know that your process won’t be helped by pressure, tests, or requirements that you ”keep up” with everybody else. That’s why we have created an environment where language learners proceed at their own pace, where each student discovers his or her own path to proficiency. If you find yourself in a group that isn’t working for your learning needs, come talk to us! The staff and teachers are here to help you every step of the way. All you need to do is stay on your path and your efforts will be rewarded with success.

OUR CONTACT INFORMATION

CONTACT US:
Please call us before visiting.

TELEPHONE: (415) 738-7383
FAX: (415) 520-5363
E-MAIL: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Classroom Location:
One Embarcadero Center, Lobby 1
San Francisco, CA 94111

Validated parking right in our building!
Only $2 for four hours of parking from 5pm,
and from 10am on Saturdays.

Partial Client List
	NBA	Arts:	Christie's
	ESPN		Sotheby's
	Nike		Lincoln Center for the
			Performing Arts

Legal & Consulting:	Linklaters LLC	NGO &	The College Board
	Baker Botts	Education:	ESE (European
	Clifford Chance		School of Economics)
	Kurt Salmon		Fulbright
	Davis Polk LLP		World Economic Forum
			Council on Foreign Relations

Fashion & Luxury	Van Cleef Arpels	Media &	ABC News
Brands:	Louis Vuitton	Publishing:	Financial Times
	Armani		Google
	Gucci		The Food Network
	Fendi		Disney
	The Standard Hotel		DIRECTV
	Donna Karen		MTV
	Perry Ellis		Hearst
	Remy Martin		Saatchi & Saatchi
	VF Sportswear		O Magazine
	Club Monaco		Barnes and Noble
	Elite Model Management		Pearson Inc.
	L’Occitane		Quirky Inc.
	Yoox Group		Newsweek
	Louboutin
	Tory Burch

Banking:	Goldman Sachs	Medical:	NY Presbyterian
	Credit Suisse
	Well's Fargo	Universities:	Columbia Business School
	Citigroup		NYU Stern Business School
	HSBC		Fordham Business School
	Conduit Capital Partners		Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health

Schools:	Dwight		PS 11
	The Hewitt School		MS 255 Salk School of Science
	Friend's Seminary		The Allen Stevenson School
	The Chapin School		Nightingale-Bamford School
	The Brearley School		The Dalton School
	Marymount		The British International School
	St. Lukes

Film & Television:	Damages Season 4 – Pastho (Multiple Actors)
	The Departed - Cantonese ( Martin Scorsese Productions)
	Morgan Spurlock - Pashto, Urdu & Tajik (Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden?)
	America's Next Top Model - French
	Uma Thurman - Japanese (Kill Bill)
	Quirky Inc. - Mandarin
	Willem DaFoe - Italian
	Olympia Dukakis - Italian
	Rocco Dispirito - Italian (restauranteur of the show "The Restaurant")
	Annie Parisse - Spanish
	Carol Kane - American Sign Language
	Richard Bernstein - ESL (from band Rammstein)
	Qian Yi and other stars from "The Peony Pavilion" - ESL (for Lincoln Center performance)

FOUNDERS AND DIRECTORS

	RACHEL MEYER What is your role at ABC Languages? Co-Founder What is your hometown? Diamond Point, New York. Tiny town in the Adirondacks on Lake George, closer to Canada than to New York City. Very cold! Which languages do you speak? Mandarin Chinese, Spanish, French, Turkish, and American Sign Language. Have learned in the past and sometimes revive Indonesian and Cantonese. Studied and have totally forgotten Japanese and Arabic. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live? Do I have to stay in one place? If not, let’s start with the Loire Valley in France, follow that with Istanbul, next back to Barcelona, I’d try Sevilla, and always wanted to spend time in the Basque Country (both sides of the border). What is your favorite food or drink? Oysters, wine. Stir and repeat. Anything else you want to share with the world? I live in Sausalito, CA and travel to San Francisco ABC by boat. I can see the San Francisco Bay, hear sea lions and watch pelicans fish from my home. Even though I live in a small town, I always find people with whom I can speak all the languages I know.
	ELIZABETH ZACKHEIM What is your role at ABC Languages? Co-Founder What is your hometown? Tough question: LA, Big Sur, CA and Eugene, OR Which languages do you speak? In the order I learned them English, French, Italian, German, Spanish and Russian What natural talent do you wish you had? To be able to sing like Aretha Where would you go for your dream vacation? A villa in the tropics or the Mediterranean Anything else you want to share with the world? I spent about 6 years living on and off in Europe (UK, France, Italy and Germany). My last time living abroad was Berlin from 1993-1995 where I worked for the government agency that privatized the former GDR (Die Treuhandanstalt). It was an unforgettable and fascinating.
	JULIA NAVARRO What is your role at ABC Languages? Director of ABC Languages, San Francisco. What is your hometown? Ekaterinburg, Russia .This is located in the Ural District of Russian, and lies exactly on a border between Europe and Asia. Which languages do you speak? Russian (native), English (fluent), and I am learning Spanish and American Sign Language at ABC. Where would you go for your dream vacation? I would check out every island in French Polynesia. The only question here is how long my dream vacation should last. What is your favorite food or drink? Spanish tapas and Japanese sushi, and of course wine with the tapas and sake with the sushi. What is a secret talent that you have? Dancing has been my passion since I was at a very young age. I competed in ballroom dance in school, and now I am enjoying any type of Latin dance.
	KIB BIBENS-LEFEBVRE What is your role at ABC Languages? Operations Guru and IT Geek Extraordinaire What is your hometown? Lubbotomy....err Lubbock, TX Which languages do you speak? English, French, Spanish, German, and Mandarin on a good day If you could have any super power what would it be? Look at someone and know what their native language is, understand it, and speak it fluently, but just while I'm in their presence. What is your favorite food or drink? Chicken Fried Steak <drool> What is a secret talent that you have? I don't have a secret talent, but my favorite useless talent is reciting 40 English prepositions in alphabetical order. Ask me!

AFFILIATIONS

ABC Languages is an active member in the following organizations:

ACTFL - American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages
TOEFL - Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages
NNELL - National Network for Early Language Learning
Manhattan Chamber of Commerce
CLTA-GNY - Chinese Language Teachers Association of Greater NY

About Us

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