Spanish Teacher from Southern Maryland
Keywords: Cultural Education in Latin America, Incan History Lessons, Environmental Education in Peru
Hello everyone! My name is Nelcy Denice Avila, and I am a Spanish Teacher from Southern Maryland with just over 3 years of experience in the public school system. I am a Latina with cultural heritage from Mexico and Colombia. I studied to become a World Language teacher at Salisbury University. Professors from the Department of Modern Languages, Intercultural Studies, and the Seidel School of Education instructed my learning to become a certified K-12 Spanish teacher. I was eager to deepen my knowledge of Spanish-speaking countries so I pursued my master’s degree in Latin American Studies at Georgetown University. My graduate studies focused on the history, culture, and society of people from Latin America and the Caribbean. With a heart for an interdisciplinary approach, I took courses with the department of Anthropology, Art History, and Museum Studies. During my time in Washington D.C., I interned with the Organization of American States and IN Series, a non-profit theater and opera company.
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Later on, I became a Spanish Teacher and the Department Chair for World Languages at Westlake High School. I taught Spanish levels 1-3, Heritage and Native Spanish Speakers, and Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) 3. After school hours, I led College and Career workshops to empower students to self-advocate and apply for new opportunities. I mentored high school students to participate in service learning, summer internships, experiential projects, and jobs. They reciprocated the encouragement as I went through the rigorous selection process of the Fulbright-Hays Group Project Abroad (Peru, 2024).
As a Fulbright-Hays Peru 2024 participant, I immensely improved my Spanish as a heritage-speaker. Living in Peru for six weeks trained my hearing and speaking skills to use local expressions and academic language. This was possible by working with university professors, non-profit leaders, anthropologists, local communities, and students. Not only did my Spanish literacy improve, but I learned handicraft skills such as weaving under the guidance of indigenous Quechua-speaking women in Chinchero.
The Fulbright-Hays granted me an unparalleled opportunity to experience the geographical, linguistic, gastronomical, and religious syncretism of Peru with fifteen in-service educators across the US. The lesson plans I created are inspired by my in-country experiences and contain my “aha” moments and personal encounters. My deepest appreciation goes to my Fulbright colleagues for their pedagogical brilliance and wisdom, as their feedback formed a unifying thread across my lesson plans. I give my heartfelt thanks to Dr. Colleen Ebacher for her deep care and collaboration with our partner organizations: Peru Spanish and University of Piura. I also share my gratitude with the Peruvian families who opened their homes and welcomed us into their communities.