Broadening horizons, improving education: A summer in Oaxaca

One of teaching’s greatest joys is the opportunity for the teacher to continue to learn throughout his or her career. Another is to be able to open students’ eyes to the realities of the world around them, and to the possibilities of what those students can be.

Cara Esquivel was a lifelong educator who sought to do this with all who passed through her doors. One of the founders of Monte del Sol Charter School in 1999, she created a program within the school where she would take students to Oaxaca to study Spanish language, Mexican culture, Zapotec arts and environmental sustainability. From 2002 to 2015, more than 200 students and 15 teachers from Monte del Sol and the greater Santa Fe community traveled to Oaxaca, and a number of students from Oaxaca participated in student exchanges to Monte del Sol.

In 2015, Cara Esquivel began planning the first ever Language Institute for Sustainability & Transformative Education in Oaxaca. or LISTO, geared exclusively for schoolteachers. She created a liaison between Monte del Sol and the Santa Fe Community College. Teachers would enroll in Spanish classes and Teaching English as a Second Language classes through Santa Fe Community College. They would take the classes in Oaxaca during the summer of 2016 and earn their TESOL Licensure while gaining invaluable continuing education and understanding of our neighbors to the south, as well as a deeper empathy for the many immigrant students that enroll in our public schools.

Last March 7, 2016, Cara died suddenly, leaving a gaping hole in the school that she helped create, and a LISTO program that had teachers enrolled, tickets purchased, and no longer had the heart that had led it for 14 years.

People joined forces. The SFCC alternative teacher licensure program moved forward. People that had known and loved Cara for years offered to help. The Community Learning Network stepped in to organize and coordinate. Numerous foundations and private donors offered grant money to help teachers with partial scholarships.

The 2016 LISTO Program in Oaxaca took place during the month of July. Nine teachers from New Mexico participated and earned their TESOL endorsements through Santa Fe Community College. Most of these teachers would have never known about Oaxaca without Cara’s passion and vision for opening other worlds to students and those who educate them. Most of these teachers would have never been able to study abroad without the generous support of community members and local foundations.

The 2017 LISTO in Oaxaca program is underway, and we have a cohort from Northern New Mexico who will be working toward their TESOL certification in July. Many of these teachers make less than $40,000 a year, so enrolling in international professional development demonstrates their commitment to education and to the immigrant populations they serve. There are still spots left to join, and more importantly, there are opportunities to donate so that teachers can offset their expenses.

To help us grow into a more culturally proficient community, you can do a number of things. You can sign up yourself, you can forward this article to colleagues, or you can contribute to the scholarship fund that helps keep Cara Esquivel’s vision alive for teachers. Please visit our website at www.listooaxaca.org or contact me directly at rgrillo@ montedelsol.org.

Randy Grillo has been teaching high school Spanish and ESL for two decades. A National Board Certified Teacher and adjunct instructor in the SFCC Alternative Teacher Licensure Program, he moved to Monte del Sol Charter School after Cara’s passing. Along with teaching, he coordinates the LISTO program and taught TESOL Methodology last summer in Oaxaca.