Spanish Student Testimonies

In teaching ESL I not only found knowing Spanish to be immeasurably useful when working with students whose 1st language is Spanish. I also find it immeasurably useful teaching broad area English because Spanish also comes from Latin roots and I find my English reading comprehension improved by being able to better parse out Latin routes using English and Spanish as clues. Further, the experience of traveling to Spanish speaking countries have given me a lot of empathy for how vulnerable you feel in a land navigated by a language you haven’t mastered. I deeply appreciate Spanish comprehension hearing it spoken in the Eau Claire community and being able to enjoy tv and movies from around the globe. 

Knowing so much of another language is one of the things I have the most pride for in my life.

--K.R. 2015 Graduate

I have so many great memories from Spanish it’s hard to count. From Spanish club my freshman year, I was able to spark an interest in the language and culture and hangout with students who wanted the same. Beginning Spanish was so fun, and honestly my favorite classes in high school. You learn so much, and the teachers are amazing. There are so many opportunities outside of school that you can join and go to as well. I was able to go to Costa Rica my sophomore year and worked very hard to get there with fundraising. I had never been outside of the country but Mrs. Oplinger made me confident in Spanish and being in a foreign country without my parents. I was able to only communicate with my host family in Spanish and it was amazing testing those skills that I learned in school. 

I am able to communicate with patients and understand what they are saying in my nursing role. However, when I worked in the operating room, translators were not allowed to come back since it was a sterile area, so I was able to communicate with patients then especially to ease them from anxiety of surgery. 

Honestly the whole Spanish department (Mrs. Kolinski and Mrs. Oplinger at the time) was amazing. I’ve never felt so connected with interests in high school until I found the Spanish department. I really enjoyed high school because of these two teachers and their amazing lesson plans and activities. I am pretty sure...AP Spanish 5 with Señora Oplinger was the class that I will remember forever.

--L.N. 2017 Graduate

My experience participating in Spanish program was phenomenal. The Chippewa Falls School District World Language Department had incredible instructors that not only were passionate about the Spanish language, culture, and content but also cared about the students they taught. Many of the Spanish teachers showed a profound commitment to providing students with enriching experience such as: by offering Spanish lessons after school through the Voyagers Program, organizing field trips to Concordia Language Villages and Festival of Nations, supporting the Chi-Hi Spanish Club activities, and allowing students the ability to become fully immersed in the Spanish culture through trips to Costa Rica. There are many great memories I have through participating in the Spanish program. Senora Arendt first captivating my interest when she pushed her "mobile classroom cart" into the FCS room at CFMS to provide Spanish lessons during the Voyagers Program to recreating "La Tomatina" as part of our Spanish Club float for one of the homecoming parades, having to make an emergency landing in Panama City on our flight to Costa Rica, and ending with our weekly "charlas y comida" during AP Spanish. 

The unique approach the CFAUSD Spanish Department used to introduce and deliver the Spanish curriculum really empowered me to feel confident and comfortable having conversations with native Spanish speakers. I recall a few instances while I studied abroad that my peers were impressed with my level of confidence to walk up to complete strangers and ask for directions or something in Spanish. For many of peers who had studied the same amount of Spanish as did I, their programs heavily focused on the grammar and conjugations with minimal opportunities to practice conversational language with native speakers. Although, I knew my grammar may not have been perfect the CFAUSD Spanish Program equipped me with the vocabulary and confidence to converse with native Spanish speakers in various types of settings. I am very grateful for the experiences and educators that were part of my journey. The only regret I have is not making the time in my schedule to have participated in the French Program as well. I really enjoyed the Exploratory French course I took at CFMS, though after spending time at the French immersion camps with Concordia Language Villages and traveling to Paris and Canada, I definitely wish I would have had the ability to complete both language programs. 

--N.M-S. 2015 Graduate

How would you describe the World Language Department in the Chippewa Falls Area Unified School District, in five to ten words? 

Collaborative, comprehensive, student centered/driven, extraordinary, dedicated, selfless

In what capacity were you directly involved with the World Language Department in the Chippewa Falls Area Unified School District?

As a building assistant principal, and then head principal, I was the direct supervisor of our World Languages Department.

Are there any more comments you would like to share about the World Language Department in the Chippewa Falls Area Unified School District that would give the panel of judges an accurate picture of why this department is deserving of the Donna Clementi Blue Ribbon Award for Excellence in World Language Programs?

Throughout the course of my administrative career, I worked with a number of master teachers, but, never a department that took it upon themselves to investigate, to learn, and to implement comprehensive curricular changes for the betterment of student learning. They were driven to become the best teachers they could become, no matter the challenges and heavy lifting that required. They grew together as a team and brought the middle school World Language staff on board with them as well. The levels of academic achievement that our students attained was surpassed only by the joy and growth they experienced as members of this very special community of learners. The World Language staff taught from their hearts to the hearts of each and every student, guiding them not only to the acquisition of a new language, but also to a better understanding of themselves and the world in which they live. This department exemplifies everything that you are looking to honor and to reward in education today. The proof can be seen in the lives of the students they have touched.

--Becky Davis: High School principal  (1998-2018)

[My child] is studying in Morocco for a 15 month internship and [my other child] is currently living in Italy.  As a dad, I never expected that I would have two children living in different continents.  The Spanish program as Chi Hi was very beneficial for both of them.  They each were able to travel to Guatemala twice and Ecuador once as part of church mission trips.  Their Spanish skills allowed them to play critical roles on their trips as translators. 

--Guardian of a 2019 Graduate