I discovered a passion for languages in my first Spanish class, taught by Señora Cota in Temecula, California. The eldest daughter of a Tijuana barber, Mrs. Cota challenged me to elevate my expectations of myself, and take chances in the language classroom. I studied Spanish throughout high school, and chose it as my major in college, spending semesters in both Spain and Mexico as a result. Subsequently I completed ELL certification in Prague, CZ and taught classes to students of various ages, from high school to adults, in Puerto Rico. I am forever grateful to my first language teacher, Mrs. Cota. Her guidance during that formative year of language acquisition left a lasting impact.
From my travels, I’ve learned that humans across the world are similar in so many ways. Before traveling to far-off locations, it can be easy to assume that a new place will be daunting because of the ways one culture can differ from another. However, we often find that we fit right in and feel at home with these ostensibly “different” people; every human being, no matter how far across the world they live, shares the human experience, connecting us all.