In the News
Lisa Jeffery and Accent Reduction Miami
Miami Herald: English in the 305 has its own distinct Miami sound
By Patience Haggin September 9, 2013
Sometimes you can tell where someone is from by the way they talk. New Yorkers, Bostonians, Chicagoans — their accents are distinct, recognizable. The Miami accent is harder to pinpoint. But there is one and Miamians need only cross the county line to be singled out for the way they draw out their vowels or linger on certain syllables. More noticeably, most Miamians speak with a certain Hispanic twang, the influence of decades of Latin American immigration that has made a mark on the language of Miami natives, even those who don’t speak Spanish themselves. Accent coach Lisa Jeffery works with people who want to learn to speak with a standard American accent--to switch their Miami pronunciation off, temporarily. Most of her clients come for professional reasons. The Miami accent, with its Latin rhythm, Spanish-influenced vowels, and its heavy “L,” strikes non-Miamians as “cutesy-wootsy.” Jeffery says that people associate this accent with the public image of Miami. Read more...
By Patience Haggin, National Public Radio August 2013
Sun Sentinal June 2013
"Yes, si or oui?": Language Barrier-- For South Florida's bilingual population, breaking through language barriers can be a maddening matter of etiquette.
June 28, 2013|By Johnny Diaz, Sun Sentinel
Pardon me, what's your preference: Spanish? Creole? Portuguese? It's a question many non-native English speakers with noticeable accents hear every day in professional and social situations in South Florida whenever they try to find common ground through our common language, English. Read more...
January 20, 2013|By Johnny Diaz, Sun Sentinel
Excuse me, can you repeat that? It's a question many non-native English speakers with noticeable accents hear in everyday professional and social situations in South Florida. So they've turned to accent-reduction classes, which have sprung up in recent years to help them speak English more clearly. Some local instructors say they've been seeing an increase in demand from people who simply want to be better understood. "It's chic now, accent reduction classes,'' said Lisa Jeffery, who teaches at FIU and privately through her business, Speech and Accent Academy in Miami. Jeffery, whose clients are from Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade, coached three Israeli soldiers from the Friends of the Israel Defense Forces who were presenting speeches for a fundraiser in Boca Raton last week. Jeffery said she has seen her business increase more than 10 percent in the past year. "With the downturn of the economy, people get training when they don't have a job. They improve themselves to get a job." But Jeffery doesn't like to call what she does accent reduction... read more
Excuse me, can you repeat that? It's a question many non-native English speakers with noticeable accents hear in everyday professional and social situations in South Florida. So they've turned to accent-reduction classes, which have sprung up in recent years to help them speak English more clearly. Some local instructors say they've been seeing an increase in demand from people who simply want to be better understood. "It's chic now, accent reduction classes,'' said Lisa Jeffery, who teaches at FIU and privately through her business, Speech and Accent Academy in Miami. Jeffery, whose clients are from Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade, coached three Israeli soldiers from the Friends of the Israel Defense Forces who were presenting speeches for a fundraiser in Boca Raton last week. Jeffery said she has seen her business increase more than 10 percent in the past year. "With the downturn of the economy, people get training when they don't have a job. They improve themselves to get a job." But Jeffery doesn't like to call what she does accent reduction... read more
