A New Dual-Language Program Begins!

FALL
2014
Cloud Forest School Foundation
Founded in 1991 by local
­parents committed to quality
education for their children, the
Cloud Forest School is an independent school located on 106
acres of cloud forest land in
Monteverde, Costa Rica. 212
students matriculate in Preschool – Grade 11 with 39 full
and/or part-time staff. Classes
are taught in both Spanish and
English, so that students become
fluent in both languages. The
curriculum is webbed around
the environment, with all grades
involved in land stewardship.
The local Board of Trustees
determines policy and maintains
close communication with the
Cloud Forest School Foundation,
the 501(c)(3) support organization in the United States which
does much of the fund-raising
for the school’s operating,
­capital, and endowment needs.
Cloud Forest School
­Foundation Mission:
Cloud Forest School Foundation
(CFSF) is a not-for-profit educational organization providing
support to the Cloud Forest School
known locally as the Centro de
Educación Creativa (CEC), a
­b ilingual, environ­m entally
­focused school in ­Monteverde,
Costa Rica. CFSF strives to ­provide
CFS with an international
­n etwork of friends, financial
support, professional development opportunities, and teacher
and volunteer recruitment.
The CFS admits students of any
race, color and national and
ethnic origin.
www.cloudforestschool.org
A New Dual-Language Program Begins!
By: Renee Burgos, Dual Language Coordinator
“Soy bilingüe, yo sé dos idiomas, órale. I'm bilingual, I'm cool.
Spanish and English, they both rule. Spanish and English, they both rule.”
T
(words from one of our favorite bilingual school songs)
his school year, the Cloud Forest School has taken on a programmatic change that
seeks to elevate the level of academics, enrich the development of identity within
the student population, and create leadership roles for long-term Costa Rican
teachers. The primary school has adopted the dual immersion model, dedicating 50 percent
of classroom instruction to each language from
preschool through fourth grade. Prior to this year,
PROGRAM CHANGES:
about 80 percent of instructional time was dedicated to
 50:50 Spanish/English
English, while 20 percent was dedicated to Spanish.
dedicated instructional time
 all content areas taught in
Academic
each language
Over the course of last year, a steering committee
was formed by various stake holders in the school
 beginner language learners
included in content classes
community to consider how to strengthen our teaching
of both language and content material. This committee
considered anecdotal evidence from current staff and the most recent research regarding
learning language through content. We came to the conclusion that a shift to a dual language
immersion model would be the most beneficial for our students in regards to gaining mastery
in both languages. All primary school students now receive content classes (Math, Science,
Social Studies/Civics) in both languages over the course of the year, in addition to daily
instruction in both English and Spanish
Language Arts.
Identity
Language, culture, and identity are deeply
intertwined. Since the majority of our
students speak Spanish in their homes, we
want our programmatic model to demonstrate that Spanish is valuable in social,
academic, and professional settings. A dual
language 50:50 model attributes equal value
to both languages.
Leadership
The Cloud Forest School has the marvelous ability to attract international teaching
and administrative staff, affording the school
multiple perspectives. At the same time, the
fact that there is frequent change in the
Marianny Yaleska Soto Baltodano
continues on page 2
A new dual language program,
continued from page 1
international staff makes it challenging to
pass on institutional knowledge. By
adopting the dual language model, we set
the stage for both Spanish and English
language staff to be familiar with curriculum across content areas. This allows for
generally longer-term Spanish language staff
to take on leadership roles in supporting
new staff members.
One month into the pilot year of the dual
immersion program, we celebrate the way in
which teachers are collaborating and
beginning to integrate content material. We
look forward to involving the steering
committee in the development of a five year
strategic plan to grow the program with
intention and thoughtfulness. We are
excited and enthusiastic about the value of
these changes for our students and families.
Shop at Amazon.com;
Benefit the School
The Cloud Forest School Foundation now
has a direct link to Amazon.com. Why?
To provide us with much-needed funds.
Tuition and donations do not a balanced
budget make; and we need further
resources.
By going to www.cloudforestschool.org,
you will see the Amazon.com banner.
Simply go to Amazon through our
website. The Foundation will receive
4% of your total order, at no a­ dditional
cost to you or to Amazon. It will all go to
our ­students’ financial aid.
Here’s
what it
looks like
International Students
at CFS: Developing Spanish
as a ­Second Language
by Eva Hernández Garcia (Spanish as a Second Language Teacher)
T
he Cloud Forest School (or Centro de
Educacion Creativa in Spanish), along
with offering an incredible educational
experience in Costa Rica, also cares about
our international students. Students immerse
themselves in the local culture, living with
local homestay families, receiving formal
language classes, and making friends who
they can practice speaking with. Everything
together forms the ideal environment for
learning a foreign language. The classes
include homework, presenting projects,
completing exams, communicating in
Spanish during the class, and ¿por qué no?
(why not?), having fun with games, where
they are always learning something in
Spanish. On occasion, students travel to
nearby places, so that their experience is
enriched with culture and language. At the
end, they take with them unforgettable life
memories from their time here, and they
also achieve a solid base of Spanish that they
will be able to utilize to help improve their
knowledge of the language in the future.
One of the institutions that sends students
to our school from the U.S. is Proctor
Academy in Andover, New Hampshire.
They send their students here for 10 weeks
at a time during their winter and spring
terms. We have also had international
families, who bring their children here with
the intention of having a cultural experience
and learning a second language. Last spring,
I was able to teach Spanish to the following
students from Proctor Academy: Max Pugh,
Grace Hovem, Alix Thurston, April Cohen,
and Lucy Manion. I also had the pleasure of
Eva with Study Abroad Students from Proctor
Academy in Andover, New ­Hampshire. (from
left to right): Max Pugh, Grace Hovem, Alix
Thurston, Eva, April Cohen
teaching Sam Steinhacker, a 6th grade student
who traveled here with his parents and
brother, and Hannah Hooper, who came to
the school as a study abroad student during
her 10th grade year. Of course, the list of
foreign students we’ve had in the past is much
longer than this, and we hope to continue to
stay in contact with all of our exchange
students, as they will always be a part of the
CFS family. Our international students also
enrich the lives of our Costa Rican students,
by building close friendships and by exchanging cultures. If you are interested in having
your child here as an exchange student, or
creating an exchange partnership with your
school, please contact External Relations at
[email protected].
Above: Eva with Lucy Manion
from Proctor Academy
Left: Eva with Study Abroad
Student Hannah Hooper
2      www.cloudforestschool.org
C l o u d F o r e s t Sc h o o l F o u n d a t i o n
Programa de Vacaciones del CEC del 2014 /
CFS Summer Programs 2014 (June 16th – July 18th)
By Sarah Burbank, Summer Programs Director and CFS Development Coordinator
T
he 2014 Summer Programs (SP) at the
Cloud Forest School were a great
success! Our bilingual day camp had
54 campers who enjoyed a variety of fun
activities over the five week program. Activities were categorized into the following areas:
Environmental Exploration, Gardens and
Green House, Arts and Crafts, and Sports
and Games. In addition, participants enjoyed
other weekly activities, including seeing a
dance presented by the local Folkloric Dance
Group, participating in a class on how to
make bracelets, playing games with “Bombita”
the clown, and much, much more! All
partici­pants took field trips once a week to
various places in the com­munity to learn
about different topics such as butterflies,
birds, bats, flowers and trees. Our older
campers even had the chance to participate
in a low-ropes course and learn some
wilderness skills.
R A I N B O W F ALL 2 0 1 4 Families can choose to have the whole
family or just the children participate in the
diverse activities we offer. For those families
looking for activities not offered through
our program, we help to assist in coordinating other travel needs, language immersion
classes, weekend getaways, and additional
activities that international participants
would like to do during their stay. For the
first time, a family living in the Central
Valley of Costa Rica joined us for a week,
and they are eager to come back next
summer!
CFS Summer Programs offer a fun and
safe way to immerse oneself in local culture
while learning valuable lifelong skills and
also raising funds to support our student
body. Income from Summer Programs goes
towards our Financial Aid Program
currently supporting 72 percent of our
students. International families and Interns
who participate in the Summer Programs
play a huge role in helping to provide those
funds.
We also offer a Summer Program Intern­
ship for young adults who are interested in
assisting our Counselors. The internship
allows them to put their coaching or teaching skills to use and gain valuable experience
working with children in a fun, relaxed, and
bilingual environment. Although one of our
interns was nervous at the beginning of the
summer, he said after wards that he “could
tell how much [the campers] looked forward
to the activities, but it was I who looked
­forward to seeing them just as much.”
Our Summer Program staff is creative
and dedicated to ensuring a positive, educational, and fun time for all; even in the rain!
Some members of our staff this summer
were seven Cloud Forest School high school
students who had previously received
­training to be Youth Leaders. If you are
interested in joining our Youth Leader team,
this is an experience that we offer 15 to 17
year olds from abroad who would like to
learn and apply leadership and teaching
skills in a fun environment alongside locals
their same age.
If you are interested in receiving more
information regarding our Summer
Programs or how to support our Financial
Aid Program, please contact Sarah Burbank
at: [email protected].
www.cloudforestschool.org      3
CFS Provided Inspiration and
Courage to Travel
By Meg Armour-Jones
I
owe a lot to Costa Rica and The Cloud
Forest School. I spent nine months
living and breathing “Pura Vida” with
my host family, speaking a new language,
and experiencing a whole new culture. It
changed so much of my perspective on life.
Not only did I learn to speak Spanish, and
enjoy the beauty of the tropical cloud forest,
but I also learned many subtle life lessons
during my time in Monteverde.
I experienced culture shock for the first
time in Costa Rica. I remember being
surprised at how quickly I adjusted, and
thinking that culture shock wasn’t nearly as
bad as I expected. Yes, the food, language,
and sense of time management was
challenging, but the people were kind and
treated me the same way I had always been
treated. When I came home for the first
time, however, I experienced “reverse culture
shock.” That was much more dramatic. I
realized how much people in the U.S. take
for granted. It was almost disturbing to
come home to the luxuries of a constantly
stocked pantry, a home full of unnecessary
things, and several cars in the driveway. This
culture shock not only helped me learn to
appreciate what I have, but also prepared
me for even more dramatic cultural changes
when I visited Uganda, where I experienced
true poverty for the first time. I was able to
endure the heartbreak it caused me because
Costa Rica had prepared me to witness how
differently people can live, and also helped
me remember that people can easily find joy
in life without material things.
The Cloud Forest School’s unique cur­
riculum also gave me something I could
never have gotten otherwise: a deep and
comprehensive appreciation for the land.
Planting trees, learning about the Cloud
Forest, and seeing how far a little bit of
­environmental consciousness can go taught
me that no act is too small to help slow the
destruction of our beautiful planet. Be it
turning off the shower when you are
­shampooing, composting your leftovers, or
planting a few trees, if every person on the
planet did such things, imagine the impact
it could have!
My travels to Costa Rica gave me one last
thing that I am probably most appreciative
of: a passion for traveling and learning
about new places and people. Without
­having spent nine months in Costa Rica, I
probably would have been too scared to
travel to Uganda by myself on outreach
trips. Without the amazing experience I had
at The Cloud Forest School, I probably
would never have considered applying to
St. George’s University School of Medicine
in Grenada in the West Indies, where I am
­currently in my first term of medical school.
Without having taken the leap to spend
such a long time abroad at such a young age,
I probably would never have been interested
in the dreams I have for my medical career,
like working for Doctors Without Borders. I
have found that new cultures and people
have so much to teach me, and my thirst to
find those lessons will persist throughout
my life.
Costa Rica gave me so many gifts: a love
for travel, an understanding and appreciation
of cultural differences, appreciation for my
planet, and many, many other gifts. I have a
loving second family that still s­ upports me
today. I have friends who are still interested
in my life and accomplishments. I have
developed a strong sense of adventure along
with a confidence in my ability to travel
alone without fear. I can’t imagine what my
life would be like today without The Cloud
Forest School, and all the experiences
attending school in a new country has given
me. I certainly wouldn’t be sitting in a classroom in a foreign country learning medicine along with several hundred other people representing dozens of nationalities. I
will be forever grateful that Costa Rica and
The Cloud Forest School placed me on the
path that I am travelling today.
“Costa Rica gave me so many things; a love
for travel, an understanding and appreciation
of cultural differences, appreciation for my
planet, and many, many other things.”
Meg Armour-Jones at her white coat ceremony
4      www.cloudforestschool.org
C l o u d F o r e s t Sc h o o l F o u n d a t i o n
Donors
to the
Cloud Forest School
and the
Cloud Forest School Foundation
July 1, 2013 – June 30, 2014
“The age of twelve or fifteen is as truly life as is forty. Childhood years are life in a very lovely
­aspect of it. And a true scheme of education, while preparing us for the future, whether we are
six or sixty, will at the same time make the present as rich and happy as possible.” — Father Flye
T
he donors, volunteers, and interns who support the Cloud Forest School community value
the magic of those childhood years that Father Flye references. The Cloud Forest School is a
place where children are thriving. This is possible because of a diverse array of support. Some donors
provided financial contributions towards scholarships, classroom materials, and the annual o
­ perating
budget. Other donors gave their time, energy and talent to assist in the classroom or on school
grounds. Whatever the nature of your involvement in and support for the CFS, it is appreciated
and necessary!
Capital Gifts
Scholarship Walk –
Monteverde
Ms. Jean D. LaManna
Mr. John G. Bratton
Rachel Mason
Mr. & Mrs. Phillip Caudill
Plant-A-Donation
Mr. & Mrs. Richard Mathewson
Dr. & Mrs. William E. Clarkson
Mr. & Mrs. Kenneth Nash
Jennifer Turner
Mr. & Mrs. Charles N. Cranmer
Dr. Eric Naylor
Dr. & Mrs. James Davidheiser
Mr. & Mrs. Henry Nennstiel
Mr. & Mrs. Gordon Frankie
Patricia S. O'Carroll & William T. Degnan
Ms. Carol Goertzel
Ms. Ann Oliver
Ms. Christine Gove Berg
Dr. & Mrs. Bran Potter
Mr. & Mrs. Martin R. Haase
Dr. & Mrs. William Priestley
Ms. Susan Hughes
Mr. & Mrs. Raymond Rymph
Mr. Michael Jawetz & Ms. Margreta Purcell
Andrea & Marino Serra
Mr. & Mrs. William Kellogg
Bob Shibley & Lynda Schneekloth
Jeana Kimball & John Weeks
Mr. & Mrs. Donald Stearns
Ms. Jean Kuntz
Mr. & Mrs. Stephen Watters
Dr. Leslie Burlingame
Mr. & Mrs. Donald J. Heniff
Patrocinio
Devon & Tommy Brooks
Loren Weighbright
Scholarship
Mr. & Mrs. Doug Caves
Lau & Bea Christensen (Charitable Foundation, Inc.)
Ms. Lee Mason & Mr. Peter Hamlin
R A I N B O W F ALL 2 0 1 4 Ms. Gail Lovejoy
www.cloudforestschool.org      5
Donors
General Support
IBM Employee Services Center
Martha Miller & Steve Ricci
Dr. & Mrs. Henry Arnold
Roxanne Etmekjian
Ms. Mary H. Minifie
Dr. & Mrs. Scott Bates
Drs. Jonathan & Amy Evans
Kathleen Misak
Mr. James W. Behnke
Elizabeth Fayram & Richard Fayram
Mr. & Mrs. Henry Nennstiel
Ms. Sherri Bergman and Dr. Scott Wilson
Dr. & Mrs. Thomas Forrest
Mary Alysia Oakley
Susan L. Berry & Debbie Flagg
Mr. & Mrs. Jameson S. French
Ms. Ernestine Olson
Mrs. Harriett S. Beury
Mr. & Mrs. Jon Gould
Ms. Mary O'Neill
Mr. & Mrs. Steve Blount
Ms. Judith B. Grande
J. Tim Parsons & Anne Judson
Mrs. Peter D. Bluhm
Mr. & Mrs. Brian Green
Dr. & Mrs. Bran Potter
Mr. David Bowman
Mr. & Mrs. Martin R. Haase
Dr. & Mrs. William Priestley
Dr. Charles D. Brockett & Dr. Heather Tosteson
Harlo Hadow & Joyce Stoker-Hadow
The Prudential Foundation
Nashoba Brooks School
Mark Hatch
Mrs. Upshur Puckette
Mr. & Mrs. Charles Burger
The Rev. & Mrs. William H. Hethcock
Caroline D. Ready
Dr. Leslie Burlingame
Mr. & Mrs. Dennis S. Hoy
Mr. & Mrs. Hamilton Richards
Dr. Ruth Buskirk
Ms. Susan Hughes
Ms. Ilse Ross
Mr. & Mrs. Doug Cameron
Mr. Michael Jawetz & Ms. Margreta Purcell
Mr. & Mrs. Raymond Rymph
David Caponera & Mamie L. Wytrwal
Mr. & Mrs. Arthur Karp
Sarah Sargent & Ron Mumme
Mr. & Mrs. Phillip Caudill
Jeana Kimball & John Weeks
Dr. Paige Schneider
Mr. & Mrs. Doug Caves
Rachel A. Kleinberg
Bill Schuler
Jim Christensen
Robin Kropp & Russell Scott
Ms. Janice Schulman
Dr. & Mrs. William E. Clarkson
Ms. Jean Kuntz
Dr. Denise J. Schwahn
Ethan D. Clotfelter & Amy L. Coulthard
Dr. Mark Lauria
Ms. Irma Scudder
Kiwanis Club of Downtown Madison, Inc.
Dr. John E. Leggat Jr.
Mr. & Mrs. Scott Shannon
Dr. Virginia O. Craighill
Mr. Karl P. Long
Betty Smallwood
Mr. & Mrs. Charles N. Cranmer
Ann S. Lowell
David Sobel
Dr. & Mrs. C. Russell De Burlo Jr.
Ms. Elizabeth M. Lowell
Jim Standley & Wendy Rockwell
Ms. Jane Dean
Mr. & Mrs. James M. Malkowski
Mr. & Mrs. Donald Stearns
Mrs. Melanie Dragan
Mr. & Mrs. Carl E. Malouf
Daniel Sullivan & Karen Dillman
Dr. & Mrs. Sherwood Ebey
Robert V. McAlister II
Mr. & Mrs. Bruce T. Swan
Mr. & Mrs. Reid Edelman
Ms. Grayce G. Haworth Mesner
Mr. & Mrs. John Tampa
Support the Cloud Forest School Foundation
Tax-deductible donations to the
Cloud Forest School Foundation
can be made online through
the Network For Good at
www.cloudforestschool.org
(Click on the “Donate Now” button)
Alternatively, checks made
payable to “Cloud Forest School
Foundation” can be mailed to:
Cloud Forest School Foundation
P.O. Box 3223
Sewanee, TN 37375-3223
 $1,000  $500  $250  $100  $50  $25  other
Name Address
Phone E-mail C l o u d F o r e s t Sc h o o l F o u n d a t i o n

6      www.cloudforestschool.org
Donation levels
Please detach and send with your donation.
t o t h e C l o u d F o r e st S c h o o l a n d t h e C l o u d F o r e st S c h o o l F o u n dati o n
Donors
t o t h e C l o u d F o r e st S c h o o l a n d t h e C l o u d F o r e st S c h o o l F o u n dati o n
Leslee Todman
Mr. & Mrs. Christopher Tompkins
Volunteers and Interns
at the Cloud ­Forest School
2013-2014
Katherine C. Van Dusen
Lauren & Jayson Vittori
Mr. Frederick Wall & Ms. Joan Hessidence
Mr. & Mrs. Thomas M. Watkins III
Mr. & Mrs. Stephen Watters
Mr. & Mrs. Tad Weiss
Gifs In Memory Of
Interns
Volunteer Groups
Kayla Anshutz
Arcadia University, Glenside, PA
Kathryn Diamant
Bank Street College, New York, NY
Dan Eisler
Caitlin Gabel School, Portland, OR
Sam Howick
Centro Panamericana Idiomas (CPI),
Stephanie Kapuschansky
Concordia University, Portland, OR
Mary Sue & Joe Cushman
Rachel Wallace
Delta College, Detroit, MI
Mr. & Mrs. Robert A. Ayres
Leigh Yakubowski
Earth Expeditions, Miami University, Oxford, OH
Mr. John Benson & Dr. Emily Puckette
Missouri State University, Springfield, MO
Ms. Carolyn Fitz & Dr. John Bordley
Dr. & Mrs. John Flynn
Robert Gips & Karen Harris
Dr. & Mrs. Thomas Howick
Dr. and Mrs. William Priestley
Monteverde Institute, Monteverde, Costa Rica
Individual
­Volunteers
Forest Croft
Becca Hardin-Nieri
Scott Hardin-Nieri
Jan Drake-Lowther
Alice Johnson
Julia Lowther & Shaun Leach
Todd Johnson
Dr. & Mrs. George Poe
Noemi Gamel
Lev Mann
Jean Kimball & John Weeks
Chris Gamel
Sara Mairs
Pacific Ridge School, Carlsbad, CA
Renbrook School, West Hartford, CT
Rollins Collins, Winter Park, FL
Rye High School, Rye, NY
Sardis Secondary School, Chilliwack, British Columbia
Sewanee: The University of the South, Sewanee, TN
South Broadway Christian Church, Denver, CO
Tesseract School, Phoenix, AZ
United World College, London, United Kingdom
Dan Steinhacker.
Meg Wallace
Bebe Lloyd
Rebecca Goertzel & Anthony A. Mann
Josh Welch
Julia Lowther & Shaun Leach
Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH
University for Peace, San José, Costa Rica
University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI
Westfield State University, Westfield, MA
Fall 2014 Interns
We are happy to have a strong group of six new interns for the fall
semester. After spending their first month in intensive Spanish
school at Centro Panamericano de Idiomas in Cerro Plano, our
interns have begun to teach.
Back: Hannah Colonnese, Alvie Garcia, Karly Strukamp
Front: Hannah Reynolds, Catricia Morris, Hannah Fenton
R A I N B O W F ALL 2 0 1 4 Catricia Morris (Swarthmore College; Teaching in Kindergarten)
Hannah Colonnese (Vassar College; Teaching in 1st & 2nd Grade)
Hannah Fenton (Vassar College; Teaching in 3rd & 4th Grade)
Reynolds (Vassar College; Teaching English in the
Hannah
Middle School)
Strukamp (Ohio University; Teaching Math in the High
Karly
School and Science in the Middle School)
Alvie Garcia (Alum of the CFS, Teaching Music)
www.cloudforestschool.org      7
The CFS Represents Costa Rican
Culture with GYLI, Global Youth
Leadership Institute
By Andrea Suarez Castro, Maricel Santamaria Abarca,
Ariel Poltronieri Jimenez and Hillary Cruz Barrantes
M
y sophomore year at the CFS ended by
my being accepted to the Global Youth
Leadership Institute(GYLI) in Costa Rica
with three other students from our school.
We each turned in an essay explaining why
we wanted to be a part of this leadership
program. I remember that I wrote that this
experience could help me define my
future — and it did. I had always been very
interested in applying to Earth University,
located in San Jose, Costa Rica, but had
never had the opportunity to visit the campus.
During this program we spent a couple of
days at the university. We learned from staff,
students, and administration during this
great opportunity to explore campus.
GYLI is a three year program that builds
upon the work completed in the previous
year. Each year has a different location while
building on the same five aspects of GYLI:
Collaborative Leadership, Environmental
Sustainability, Religious Pluralism, Multicultural Identity, and Circle of Community.
We only got to experience the third year of
“
8      www.cloudforestschool.org
the GYLI program, but this was enough to
make strong friendships with many people
and learn different techniques to become
better leaders. We created trust circles
where each member had the opportunity to
share about their lives and personal
experiences. We felt comfortable sharing
inside these groups made up of people we
had only just met. This circle of trust that
was developed between strangers inspired
us to find a way to bring this feeling of
comfort and trust back to our own school
community. Throughout this program we
also did various activities like team building
games with collaborative leadership. These
activities as well as a final project, called the
Leader Learning Plan (LLP), helped to
shape us as leaders once we were back in
our CFS community.
The Leader Learning Plan is focused on
each school’s individual community needs.
The four of us and our staff member, Alicia
Rolf, worked together to develop a plan to
meet what we saw as a need in our school
Andrea Suarez Castro learning
about the Peri-Urban farm to help
encourage gardening with limited
space and resources.
community. As CFS students we are
­concerned about our students’ wellness. We
want to find a way to focus more on our
­students as a whole and to build an environ­
ment where each student is valued. These
visions lead us to create the CCW, the
­Collaborative Community Wellness
­organization. We will be working over the
next year toward our LLP to make the CCW
something that will continue year after year
and help our school community grow
together and thrive.
— Andrea Suarez Castro
I learned so much not only about others and
leadership, but also about myself.
”
C l o u d F o r e s t Sc h o o l F o u n d a t i o n
T
Hillary Cruz Barrantes making
space saving planters with
other GYLI participants
here are so many feelings and experiences
that I went through during this program.
Not only was GYLI a program to learn how
to be a good leader and face world issues,
but it was also about the connection you
created with the other students and teachers.
In the eleven day program I can say I made
a lot of new friends. I felt comfortable, I felt
free to express myself, I felt safe, and I felt
heard. We were also able to work as a team.
The program gave me knowledge, happiness,
and most importantly it gave me inspiration.
This type of student wellness is what we want
to transmit through our new program called
CCW. We want people to feel accepted,
heard, safe, comfortable, and happy. As a
community everything is possible!
— Hillary Cruz Barrantes
T
he GYLI experience was unique and I
am very thankful for this opportunity. I
learned so much not only about others and
leadership, but also about myself. I reflected
on my life and how I could improve it to be
more of a role model to others. I enjoyed
this experience and hope to share what I
learned with my community and also
encourage others to take advantage of the
GYLI program to be a part of this awesome
experience.
R A I N B O W F ALL 2 0 1 4 N
ew experiences are always worth your
time and dedication. GYLI was a united
place. We could share personal experiences
and feel comfortable. Learning new cultures
and hearing personal experiences from
others was amazing. We became new
friends no matter their past. GYLI has a
future in each school represented in the
program. We decided that we at the CFS
were missing different social elements, such
as confidence. We are using the CCW to
make a change in our community.
— Maricel Santamaria Abarca
Ariel Poltronieri Jimenez
exploring the town of Santa
Ana with his new friends
— Ariel Poltronieri Jimenez
“
Maricel Santamaria Abarca meeting
her host family for the first time
The program gave me knowledge, happiness, and
most importantly it gave me inspiration.
”
www.cloudforestschool.org      9
New Staff at the
Cloud Forest School
We are excited to welcome ten new staff members this fall at
the Cloud Forest School. Below you will find a short biography
for each new member of our community.
Brenda Covarrubias,
1st/2nd grade teacher. Brenda is
originally from Mexico and she
grew up in San Francisco, California. She began her career as a
bilingual educator with Teach
for America as a kindergarten
teacher in New York City. She
enjoyed teaching so much that
she returned
to California
to get her
Bilingual
Teaching
Credential
and her
Master’s Degree in Teaching
from New College of California.
She worked as a first grade
teacher in her childhood neighborhood in San Francisco for
five wonderful years. Wanting to
teach abroad, Brenda had the
opportunity of working in Costa
Rica’s central valley and later in
northern Chile. Now she is
happily back in Costa Rica with
us at the Cloud Forest School
along with her dog Negrito.
Dan Eisler, Music Teacher:
Dan Eisler is a candidate for a
Bachelor’s degree in education
and environmental studies from
Swarthmore College, and came
originally to the CFS as an intern
with the Environmental
Education
Coordinator.
In addition to
pursuing a
career in
education, Dan is a passionate
musician. He has been involved
in several projects as well as
performing as a singer songwriter. Dan had an amazing
experience as an intern during
which time he had the opportunity to organize two student
concerts. He is very much
looking forward to devoting all
of his energies in the school to
making music happen in the
classroom and community.
Beyond the classroom, Dan also
enjoys fishing, scary movies, and
properly spicy food.
Lindsey Dodd, High School
Math Teacher: Lindsey earned
her Bachelor’s degree in International Business and
Spanish with
a minor in
Latin American Studies
in 2011. After
some additional soul-searching,
she obtained a teaching certificate and began teaching high
school math in the Dallas, Texas
suburb of Irving. During their
honeymoon in June 2014,
Lindsey and her husband,
Edward, decided to visit Monteverde. They immediately fell in
love with the town and The
Cloud Forest School, which
happened to be in need of a high
school math teacher.
Whitney Hall, External Relations Manager: Before coming to
Monteverde, Whitney worked as
a Program Coordinator for
Global Glimpse in Nicaragua,
where she
designed and
led student
trips that
emphasized
service education and
global citizenship. She holds a
B.A. in Anthropology from NYU
and a Master’s Degree in International Social Welfare and
Program Development from
Columbia University. She previously worked in Harlem as a
social worker for HIV positive
immigrants from Africa, the
Caribbean and Latin America, as
well as at a teen center in the
10      www.cloudforestschool.org
From Left to Right (Top Row): Lindsey Dodd,
Chelsea Krema, Brenda Covarrubias
(Middle Row): Mari Wadsworth, Whitney Hall,
Sara Nissley (Front Row): Dan Eisler,
Gerardo Vivas, Liz Chase-Vivas, Elsa Cristina
Gonzalez Ramirez.
Bronx. Whitney has spent a
significant amount of time
leading youth programs in East
Africa and Latin America, and
has worked as a guide and interpreter for The Road Less Traveled. Originally from Ojai, California, she loves to hike and
work on her photography blog:
Wild View West. She is excited
to be part of the Cloud Forest
School team!
Chelsea Krema, Kindergarten
Teacher: Chelsea was born and
raised in Boise, Idaho and
attended Seattle University for
her undergraduate degree in
Public Admini­stration. She has
worked with non-profit organizations in Seattle that tutor
students in
low-income
neighborhoods
and provide
therapeutic
care for abused
and neglected
youth. Before joining the staff at
CFS, Chelsea spent three years in
Northern Central Costa Rica as
a Rural Economic Development
volunteer with the Peace Corps.
Chelsea loves the outdoors and
is excited to get to know a new
part of Costa Rica!
Sara Nissley, Middle School
English Teacher: Sara Nissley
comes to CFS from Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania with her husband
and three boys. She received her
B.A. in Justice,
Peace and
Conflict
Studies from
Eastern
Mennonite
University, a
graduate teaching certificate
from the University of Pennsylvania, and an M.S. in Restorative
Practices in Education. She is
certified in K-6, and 6-9
Language Arts and has taught
for 8 years in Philadelphia city
schools. Before classroom
teaching, she taught GED classes
and worked for Philadelphia
Outward Bound. She has lived in
Africa and traveled and studied
through various parts of Latin
America and is thrilled to now
live in Costa Rica. When not
teaching, Sara loves to run,
garden, and play soccer. She is
also a part-time beekeeper. She
shares the conservation focus of
the school and is excited to
explore the natural world of
Monteverde.
Elsa Cristina Gonzalez
Ramirez, Student Services
Teacher: Elsa is originally from
Santa Elena and is one of eight
siblings. She studied at the technical professional high school of
Santa Elena where she received a
certificate in education and
tourism. From there, Elsa
studied at Castro Carazo University, where she completed a
Bachelor’s in Tourism Administration. Elsa also holds a certification in occupational health
from the National Institute of
Learning. Previously, Elsa taught
at the technical professional high
school of Santa
Elena, teaching
environmental
education, tourism,
and accounting.
She also taught
Spanish as a second
language at CPI in Monteverde.
She feels that working at the CFS
has become similar to a second
home because it is like a family
that continually supports each
other. Elsa appreciates that she is
always learning from the
students, and always trying to
improve in order to better serve
their needs.
C l o u d F o r e s t Sc h o o l F o u n d a t i o n
Liz Chase-Vivas, Elementary
School Academic Manager:
Liz grew up in Iowa and moved
to Chicago to
student teach
in a bilingual
setting in the
Little Village
neighborhood. She
loved the experience and
stayed in Chicago to teach in the
Chicago Public Schools for ten
years. Since then, Liz has taught
in a Spanish Immersion Program
at Lincoln School in Oak Park,
Illinois. She has worked with
kindergarten through 5th grade,
and loves the learning experience at all ages. Liz is excited to
be living in Monteverde with her
husband and children, and to
work collaboratively with
teachers to further the strong
learning community at Cloud
Forest School.
R A I N B O W F ALL 2 0 1 4 Gerardo Vivas, Middle
School Math & Science Teacher:
Gerardo grew up in Chicago and
is originally from Honduras. He
went to Loyola University for his
undergraduate work and Northeastern Illinois University for his
Master’s in Education. Gerardo
has taught middle school in the
Chicago
Public
Schools for 13
years and is
very happy to
be teaching in
Monteverde.
His wife will also be working at
CFS and their three children will
be attending the Cloud Forest
School as well. In his free time,
he likes building projects at
home with his children.
Mari Wadsworth, High
School Science Teacher: Mari was
born in Norfolk, Virginia, and
lived in Richmond until she was
seven. Her family moved to
Monteverde, Costa Rica, before
returning to the United States in
2001. She attended Monteverde
Friends School for 2nd, 3rd, 4th,
8th, and 10th grade. Mari graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University with a B.S. in
Environmental Studies from the
School of Life
Sciences.
After much
debate, she
decided to
take a twoyear deferral
from a nonprofit organization,
Teach for America, to live in
­Monteverde again. She is very
excited to return to her second
home and teach at the Cloud
Forest School. In her free time,
Mari loves talking about science,
exploring the outdoors, dogs,
and photography.
Cloud Forest School
­Foundation Board
Dr. Mark W. Lauria,
President
Mary Bruce Alford,
Vice President
Douglas A. Caves,
Treasurer
Elizabeth M. Lowell,
Secretary
Margaret (Margy) Ayers
Doug Cameron
Mark J. Hatch
Scott Shannon
Christopher R. Tompkins
Stephen Watters
www.cloudforestschool.org      11
Cloud Forest School FOUNDATION
P.O. Box 3223
Sewanee, TN 37375
Published by:
The Cloud Forest School Foundation
P.O. Box 3223
Sewanee, TN 37375
change Service Requested
Nonprofit
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paid
sewanee tn
permit no 63
Phone: 601-715-6873
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.cloudforestschool.org
Editors: Mary Bruce Alford,
Elizabeth Lowell, and Mary Priestley
Designer: Dan Reiff
Printed on recycled paper.
Please recycle.
In an effort to save paper we
would like to provide you with
the ­option to receive a PDF
copy of the R
­ ainbow by e-mail.
If you would like to be added to
the distribution list, please
e-mail or call Mary Bruce Alford
at ­[email protected],
601-665-4672
Cloud Forest School
Summer Programs
15 de Junio – 17 Julio, 2015
Ages 3-9
receive full-day
bi-lingual programming including:
group dynamics, arts and crafts,
sports and games, environmental
exploration, and gardens and green
house work, each week with a
different theme, surprise activities,
and a closing ceremony.
Ages 10-17
Come and join the fun in the clouds!
We invite international families to come and join us for one or more
weeks. We assist with travel plans, rentals, and additional tours.
We have a Youth Leadership program for teens 15-17 years old, and
6-week internships available for those over 18 including a week of
orientation activities, tours, and cultural immersion programming.
For more information, contact Sarah at: [email protected]
12      www.cloudforestschool.org
receive full-day
bi-lingual programming, the last 3
weeks with a specific theme*:
Week 1 Regular Program
Week 2 Regular Program
Week 3* Environmental Explorers
Week 4* Sports and Games
Week 5* Team Building Adventure