San Juan Elementary
For four weeks during the month of July and August, Renato Reina, a Two-Way Immersion teacher at San Juan Elementary, will participate in the Fulbright Teacher Exchange Program to Uruguay. Mr. Reina will be joining nine other teachers and administrators from around the United States that were selected to travel to Uruguay as educator ambassadors.
During his stay in Uruguay, Mr. Reina will plan and conduct teaching activities for local teachers, students, and the community at large. He will exchange teaching strategies, make general presentations on US history, geography and culture, participate in field trips and develop joint educational projects. He will assist local schools, spending a week or two in each one, observe classes, and plan and conduct teaching activities (in English and Spanish). Host schools will be located both in the capital city of Montevideo and in the provinces, offering Mr. Reina a diverse, nation-wide experience.
San Juan Elementary participated in a similar exchange experience in February when Mr. Reina hosted Mrs. Victoria Vazquez, an English Teacher from the city of Colonia del Sacramento, the capital of the province of Colonia, in Uruguay. Mr. Reina will have the opportunity to visit Mrs. Vazquez in Colonia and help to continue the exchange project she started during her visit to San Juan Elementary.
The Fulbright Teacher Exchange Program provides opportunities for teachers and administrators to enhance cooperation and strengthen mutual understanding among educators in Uruguay (and other participating countries) and the United States. The exchange is designed to create strong linkages between participants and communities, to promote innovative ideas in teaching and programs, and to ensure a long-lasting impact on participating schools both in Uruguay and the United States.
Established in 1946 under legislation introduced the late Senator J. William Fulbright of Arkansas, the Program’s purpose is to build mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the rest of the world. The Fulbright Program, America’s flagship international educational exchange program, is sponsored by the United States Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Since its inception, the Fulbright Program has exchanged approximately 273,500 people, including 102,900 Americans who have studied, taught or researched abroad and 170,600 students, scholars and teachers from other countries who have engaged in similar activities in the United States. The Program operates in over 150 countries worldwide.
