Last week Esperanza Elementary School was invited to the Santa Fe Roundhouse to be recognized with an award for their efficient Bilingual Multicultural Program at the Bilingual Education Day 2023 at the NM State Legislature event.
"Yá'át'ééh!
First of all, thank you all for joining us at the New Mexico Association for Bilingual Education (NMABE), the Public Education Department Language and Culture Department (PED), as we celebrated New Mexico's rich cultural and linguistic heritage, traditions and especially the "50th Anniversary of the Bilingual Multicultural Education Act of 1973".
In celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Bilingual Multicultural Education Act, in 1973, New Mexico became the first state in the United States to adopt a Bilingual Multicultural Education Act (BMEA). The law provides local districts with funds to implement bilingual multicultural instructional programs that provide students with opportunities to expand their conceptual and linguistic abilities while learning to value diversity.
Mostly, I want to congratulate Esperanza Elementary School and their Bilingual Teachers (Louise Ramone-Navajo Teacher & Rebecca Dierdorf - Spanish Teacher), Assistant Principal (Trisha Bejar), and Executive Director of Support Services (Nathan Pierantoni) to accept the Bilingual Multicultural Education Program (BMEP) recognition award at the Roundhouse in Santa Fe, New Mexico. It was an amazing and wonderful day to celebrate our diversity.
Ahéhee!"
-Carmelita Lee, District Instructional Facilitator MultiCultural Services Department
"The bilingual program at Esperanza is successful because of the collaboration of all teachers to help promote and motivate students to pursue excellence in their Heritage Language. This includes all staff, from custodial workers to administrators.
We also have a great supportive community. Our students are very proud of their Heritage language and culture. There is a saying that I like: "El que habla dos idiomas, vale por dos". This means, He who speaks two languages is worth two."
-Ms. Rebecca Dierdorf, Spanish Bilingual Teacher
Mrs. Louise Ramone also has a saying: "Nihizaad bee nihidziil". This means our language keeps us strong.
