Today we’d like to introduce you to Sandra Baldeon.
Sandra, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Children were always my passion. They possess a combination of sweetness, outgoing nature, curiosity and a desire to learn. Because of these qualities, I found teaching to be very rewarding – teaching children to speak a second or third language, even more so! However, I saw an opportunity with the way foreign language was being taught in this country. Full immersion is the best way to master a new skill. Full language immersion usually meant leaving the country to master the language. My idea was to bring native speaking teachers to the students; to immerse students in language with teachers from around the world, so they could learn a second or even a third language.
My vision all started back in January 2004, with one student in the Su Escuela After School Enrichment program. It wasn’t long before that one student grew to 10, leading us to expand into a larger space in 2007 and continue to grow. Between 2008 and 2010, Su Escuela expanded into two locations -one in Cohasset and another in Duxbury. By the spring of 2010, there were over a hundred students ages 4 and up who attended one to two days per week, for two hours. Then, it was time to expand again, but this time I thought bigger.
During the summer of 2011, Su Escuela grew to become a private, full immersion, foreign language school in Hingham, MA. Our school immerses English speaking children not just in a second language – Spanish, but a third as well – Mandarin. SELA’s strength is its curriculum. We created a cumulative curriculum, where each month children reach a new milestone, continually building on and reinforcing what they’ve already learned. It is designed by age and skill level, so each year the child will be challenged by the curriculum, and engaged in a way that will make him to want to learn.
Our students graduate from Pre-K (4-5 years old), reading in Spanish. When they graduate from fifth grade, they are reading, writing and speaking in Spanish and they also have a level of proficiency in Mandarin. Additionally, students are well prepared in all subjects – English, Math, Science, Social Studies – in alignment with Massachusetts Core Curriculum standards.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Starting a new business will always have some hiccups. One of my biggest struggles was breaking the conservative stereotype of how to teach a second language and how children should learn a second language. I never lose sight of my mission – to provide a top-notch educational experience with a full immersion language component at its core. I continue to learn from mistakes and move on, getting stronger along the way.
Please tell us about Su Escuela Language Academy.
Our world is changing; it is becoming smaller and moving faster than ever. I started a school with a different academic approach where children are learning to speak a second language, while being challenged academically, across all subject areas. I created a school where I see children engaging with their teachers and peers in different languages, during their academic days. However, SELA does not just teach children a second language, we do not just prepare children academically – we build confidence, character, and appreciation for other cultures – that is what makes us different. After thirteen years, I cannot help but feel that my method is working.
There have been many moments, daily, where I look around and feel much gratitude for all we have built at SELA. The teachers, the students, the staff – all contribute to our success each day. I will say, my proudest moment, so far, was seeing the inaugural fifth grade class graduate this June. Our students are ready to move on middle school – academically, socially, and of course fluent in Spanish! After the ceremony, as I spoke with families and students, so many shared the same message. It was a message of thanks, for creating this school and for being a strong business woman. I feel like I am impacting the future. I am helping to shape the leaders of tomorrow. It’s humbling to hear this message, to see these students move onto bigger and better things – it makes me feel like all this hard work, and my vision, are paying off.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
If I had to start all over – I’d have started the school earlier! There is such a need and children are so able to excel in this environment of dual language!
Contact Info:
- Address: 75 Sgt William B Terry Drive, Hingham, MA
- Website: www.suescuela.com
- Phone: 781.741.5454
- Email: admissions@suescuela.com
- Instagram: su.escuela
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SuEscuelaLanguageAcademy/
- Twitter: @SuEscuelaLang
SONY DSC
Getting in touch: BostonVoyager is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
