In an effort to fill open teaching positions, Hartford Public Schools recruited and hired 16 teachers from Puerto Rico over the last three years to teach in the dual language program.
One of the teachers, Patricia Vera or Ms. Patti, started last year and will begin her second year in the district at Dwight Bellizzi Dual Language Academy. She prides herself on having a bright and colorful classroom.
“It's important for students to feel welcome in a classroom because these early years shape their view of education, their view of teachers, their view of learning all together,” said Vera.
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Vera worked hard during her first year of teaching in Connecticut and used DonorsChoose to elevate her classroom experience for students. The first project was gathering more books in Spanish for her library corner, which became a favorite spot for her students. The second project was focused on gathering more art supplies for students to express themselves and their emotions.
“It releases stress and helps kids communicate, especially if you have kids that have anger issues or behavior issues,” Vera said.
Vera was one of the teachers recruited for the Paso a Paso program. The students are all viewed as English speakers and they get split into two groups. They spend half their day learning in English and half their day learning in Spanish. Vera said her students will not only be bilingual, but biliterate.
“I don't think there's anything more frustrating than when you're not understood or when people don't know what you're saying,” Vera said. “Giving the students this opportunity to interact and be able to know two languages, not only is a privilege, but it really changes the brain.”
The district piloted this program during 2021 while facing a teacher shortage. The district also had a recent influx of students from Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria.
“We know that it's super important to put teachers in front of students that look like them and that reflect the cultural and diverse backgrounds that they bring with them,” said Daisy Torres-Hill, the acting assistant superintendent for professional learning and multilanguage learners.
Hartford Public Schools brought back two teachers from Puerto Rico in 2021. Then in 2022, they brought back 14 teachers and in 2023, two additional teachers.
“It's more than just getting our teachers to come here and teach, but it's about retaining them. I think what makes our program so unique and so special is that we have wraparound services for our teachers. So, they become part of a cohort, a network if you will, and they receive housing support, relocation stipends, just getting them situated, because we know that there's more to their day than just teaching,” said Torres-Hill, who said the district also builds in social events so the teachers can bond with each other and get to know the community.
The district has retained all 16 teachers in this program and has approximately 60 classroom vacancies compared to 92 this time last year.
“This is showing me that these kinds of recruitment efforts are working, and that they're reducing our number of vacancies and keeping teachers in the classroom,” said Torres-Hill.
Hartford Public Schools also launched its Caribbean Connection program last year with four teachers from the Dominican Republic. This year, the district hired five additional teachers from the Dominican Republic, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago. They also have a teacher joining the district from Brazil.
As the district prepares for another school year to begin, Vera said she is excited to teach and learn from another class of students.
“First graders are unapologetically honest, which is both hilarious and scary, but learning about their lives, learning about their families and their interactions and seeing how they grow is insane,” Vera said. “You were part of their life and that impact matters. So, what you choose to do with it matters. So, I hope that the year I have with them, or that moment that I have with them, makes them happy and helps them grow.”
