The Queen Sofía Spanish Institute Appoints Begonia Santos as New President and CEO
“There is a profound lack of knowledge in the United States about Spain’s crucial contributions to its history and culture. At the same time, there is a great desire among the population, the growing Hispanic and non-Hispanic population, to know, study and deepen these contributions. The QSSI has been, for 70 years, a fundamental reference in the promotion of this knowledge. Every new generation, when studying the history of the United States, should become aware of the Spanish heritage, past, present and future, the latter two through the enhancement of the excellence of the Spanish-speaking world today. Let us not forget that the United States is home to 60 million Spanish speakers.”
M. Begonia Santos, who has been serving as the Institute’s Executive Director and COO since 2021, assumes the new position after demonstrating exceptional leadership over the past three years.
During this period, the Queen Sofia Spanish Institute has experienced remarkable growth in its cultural and educational initiatives, consolidating its position as a key institution for promoting cultural exchange between Spain and the United States, deepening mutual understanding and highlighting the excellence of the Spanish-speaking world.
Among the most outstanding achievements of her tenure is the “America&Spain250” initiative, launched on July 4, 2023, as part of the celebrations of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States in 2026. This ambitious project, which reflects the growing interest in the United States to expand knowledge about all those who contributed to the creation of the new country, aims to celebrate 250 years of shared history between the two countries and was formally inaugurated with a symposium in May 2024 in Madrid in collaboration with the Ramón Areces Foundation. During the event, renowned American and Spanish historians shared cutting-edge research on this historical period. In 2025, the second edition of the America&Spain250 symposium will take place, this time in Washington D.C.
In 2024, the Queen Sofia Spanish Institute also celebrates its 70th anniversary, an occasion that underscores its legacy as a cultural bridge between Spain, the Spanish-speaking world and the United States. With this appointment, M. Begonia Santos takes on the challenge of leading the institution into a new phase, reaffirming its commitment to the mission established in 1954: to foster friendship, promote mutual understanding and strengthen the bonds of peace between the two nations.
Begonia Santos has extensive professional experience in the financial and educational sectors. With a degree in Law and Corporate Counsel from Universidad Pontificia de Comillas (ICADE) and an MBA from Fordham University, she has been Executive Director and COO of the Queen Sofía Spanish Institute since 2021, and previously worked in the finance sector in Spanish and U.S. institutions, in the areas of fixed income product sales for institutional investment and in international private banking. After an illustrious career in the financial sector, she turned to the field of language and culture. Santos has extensive experience in the world of education. She has been a Spanish language and culture teacher at a private school in New York and a private tutor and trainer for official language exams. She has actively collaborated with the Instituto Cervantes, the Spanish Consulate in New York and NYU for the promotion of Spanish language and culture in the United States. Since joining the QSSI, Santos has demonstrated a strategic vision that has been key to the expansion of the Institute’s cultural and educational initiatives.
Press Contact: press@queensofiasi.org
