Photos by Clara de Oliveira, showing celebratory posters and artwork in Rockland High
By Clara de Oliveria, Staff Writer
10/8/25
ROCKLAND- Hispanic and Latin Heritage Month started on September 15 and will continue through October 15, and it is a celebration of the Hispanic and Latin communities in American society. Rockland High School joined the cause and is announcing inspiring stories of people in the Hispanic Community.
Rockland High School has a diverse school environment containing a large percentage of Latinos and Hispanics who will be celebrated and be visible during this time of the year.
Hispanics are individuals who are born or their ancestors are born in a Spanish-speaking Country. Latinos are individuals born in or whose ancestors were born in Latin America, which encompasses South and Central America.
The immigrant Latino and Hispanic Community contributes yearly to billions of tax dollars that go to social security, many of whom do not have access to the program.
The community contributes to the majority of agricultural and hard labor jobs. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) article called “Potential Implications of Immigration Restriction on the U.S. Agricultural Workforce”, 66% of immigrant agricultural workers are non-citizens. However, regardless of their contributions, many of their stories and struggles remain unseen.
Rockland High School ELL teacher Rachel Zalocha shared that “we have students who are learning the language simultaneously over the content, and that can bring on a challenge; at the same time, we also have students who have to work as part of the family obligation.”
Students who are first-gen immigrants have to overcome these challenges while adapting to a different country as well, showcasing the resilience in the immigrant community.
Rockland sophomore Rafaelly dos Reis shared some of her personal difficulties as an immigrant student. She believes immigrants are the base of the country and that their hard work often goes unseen. She also said it has been a struggle to stay apart from her sister and father, who came into the US before her to better adapt and start building a life in the country.
However, some students have different connections to their family’s roots, cultures, and language.
Valerie Salazar Pena, a Freshman at Rockland High School, has a Colombian father and a Panamanian mother.
Salazar Pena said, “I am not that good at speaking Spanish. I understand a lot, but no one really speaks it in Rockland; most people speak Portuguese, and I speak Spanish.”
Therefore, she showcased the idea of disconnection from culture and the struggles to fit in.
It is part of Hispanic and Latin culture and history to overcome challenges and difficulties and persist; as a result, throughout the years, they have been receiving more international visibility.
Those who have a Hispanic or Latino heritage contain a common story, of relatives who gave up their lives in their home country to search for a better life, better education, and better job opportunities. However, those decisions aren't always the easiest for the students.
Senior Rockland High School student Joao Vitor Garcia said the hardest part of immigrating for him was getting to know people.
He said, “It is always weird to get with people who have a completely different mindset, both in terms of cultural differences and different realities. That's why most immigrants ended up in groups of people who came from the same background as them and just don't really talk to other people,”
Hispanics and Latinos have one of the richest cultures, with numerous aspects to consider. Over the course of the past years, Hispanic and Latino elements of the culture have been making their way into American society.
Rockland High School Spanish teacher Kayla Burgos said she’s noticed a movement for the integration of the Hispanic and Latin culture coming over American society through food, TV shows, and music that demonstrates the richness, not only in the culture, but in the history, therefore making the visibility of those aspects crucial for the education of different diverse groups.
As a teacher who works with numerous immigrant students and has seen their persistence and growth, Rogers Middle School ELS teacher Julia Driscoll said, “I just fell in love with teaching English language learners. I think it's exciting to see students progress from speaking no English to achieving fluency.”
Immigrant students contribute to the school community through their diverse cultures, educational backgrounds, and knowledge of a different environment. To integrate is to celebrate humanity and its numerous differences.
Rockland High School ELL teacher Ms. Digna Nunez shared that as a Hispanic American herself, she felt the duty of helping immigrants because she was once in their position. She finds it extremely rewarding when they pass the test required to leave ELL classes, called access. She loves it when her students have the chance to attend English classes that are not solely focused on English learners.
Therefore, Rockland High took the month to celebrate the culture, the students, and their achievements. Every morning in the announcements, a story of an inspirational person of Hispanic descent is shared for the students to reflect. Throughout the hallways, teachers have placed educational posters on the walls, fully embracing the diversity in the community.
For students to further feel included, a new club was formed, the Multicultural Club, that welcomes diversity into the school.