The school year has started in San Juan County for several districts ushering in not only new students but educators and support staff.
For Priscilla Cruz and Anjelica Grijalva, the classroom was a support system that shaped their perception of what education could mean for students.
Cruz, who will be teaching sixth and eighth grade at Hermosa Middle School, started at the district as a campus safety monitor at Piedra Vista High School.
What began as a safety position then became a mentoring and translating role, Cruz said.
“I want to say that I didn’t pick education – education picked me,” she said. “I knew that I could do something more with just translating for parents and my administration.”
Cruz said she took that step into teaching to support bilingual students who are wanting to keep their home language alive.
Grijalva said she shares a similar excitement in bringing bilingual support as a Spanish speaker to her third grade classroom at Bluffview Elementary School.
“I’m very excited to be able to connect with those families and not put those kids in a position where they have to translate conversations between me and parents and be able to have those direct relationship with parents and take off that burden from some of the students,” she said.
In middle school, Grijalva said the adults in her school really showed up for her and she also found that support in the Educational Assistant Teacher Program that she graduated from this year.
“Being in the same classroom with my mentor, it brought really valuable experience – the do’s and don’ts – and I’m very excited to be in my own classroom this year and put all those values and practices into work,” she said.
A practice Grijalva said she wants to include in her class is flexibility, while Cruz is focusing on celebrating bilingualism in her classroom.
“I lived in California and in elementary never once was I in a bilingual class,” said Cruz. “I came here and started fifth grade and they offered the bilingual classes and loved it. We felt heard, we felt respected and valued.”
At the middle school grade, Cruz said she plans to balance the implementation of phone policies and the use of devices by finding those moments where it can be used as a learning tool.
“When I build my lessons I make sure that it’s always either group or partner based,” she said. “Technology is a problem and I am going to use it in my classroom but it’s going to be in a way that is best for them and making sure they’re still working.”
Going into the school year, both Cruz and Grijalva have felt the investment from the district toward their careers and look forward to providing a safe environment for their students.
“Success can be measured in so many different ways,” Grijalva said. “Just knowing that I’ve given them something that they can call theirs. It’s a classroom that feels safe and warm that they want to go to everyday.”
On Aug. 6, Grijalva worked inside her classroom ahead of the school year with a ‘Meet the Teacher’ paper on each desk detailing information on herself and the school. That day, Grijalva said she was excited to teach science and was expecting 17 students ahead of the first day of school on Monday.