Adult Education

Truth be told, I always envisioned I would spend most of my professional life in Guatemala, in a courtroom, as a public defender, protecting the rights of women and employees. A twist of fate, however, right after finishing law school, catapulted me back to the United States and a new life with my husband. Soon, I was busy having and raising our children, and I began the search for a new career that not only would be family-friendly but would also allow me to capitalize on my legal training and highly developed language skills.

I found a comfortable niche as one of the first-ever district translators in San Diego County at the Vista Unified School District (VUSD). In that position, I translated documents and interpreted for 22 school sites, school administrators and educators. I learned quickly that VUSD’s bilingual staff was hungry for training in everything from spelling in Spanish to translating and interpreting in the school environment to involving and reaching out to Latino parents. Yet there was no access to or availability of such training, and so I found myself conducting mini-workshops in such areas on a frequent basis. In a short period of time, I also offered this training at the San Diego County Office of Education. Hundreds of San Diego County school district bilingual employees participated enthusiastically.

This experience of developing and delivering bilingual curriculum to bilingual paraprofessionals and educators was my introduction into the world of adult education. My interest developed, and after receiving my California Adult Education credential, I spent the following 10 years developing and delivering bilingual curriculum in computer literacy, Spanish literacy, high school diploma, business and office occupations, and more.

During this period of working as an Adult Education instructor, I came to realize that Spanish speaking parents were also eager to participate in their children’s education but that they did not have the necessary tools to do so. So, at the end of the 2003 school year, I decided that the time was right to dedicate my efforts to my business, Hola Language Services, and provide such opportunities.

So now, instead of helping people in the courtroom, I am helping them in the classroom. Currently Hola Language Services is working on collaborating with Santillana USA to develop curriculum in Spanish that will provide a type of tutorial of selected titles from Santillana’s Developmental Stages Collection, Parenting Skills Library and Newcomer Resource Library.

 

For the complete article request the December issue of LATINA Style magazine.

Leslie Padilla-Williams is the CEO of Hola Language Services and a recipient of a 2005 Anna Maria Arias Memorial Business Fund Award. For more information regarding HOLA Language Services, visit www.holalang.com.