During her time at Dwight, Spanish Teacher Luz Giraldo infused cultural elements into her exciting lessons, taking students on enriching trips and bringing language to life through her passion for education.
Luz Giraldo, DP Spanish Teacher, who is retiring this year, has been at Dwight for more than half of her life. Hundreds of students’ lives have been deeply impacted by her unique and thorough mentorship, and dozens of teachers have experienced her wisdom, encouragement, and devotion to the craft of teaching.
Dominique Mas, former head of the Language Department, spoke about Ms. Giraldo’s profound presence in the community: “Luz was the heart of the department. Not only as a Spanish teacher, but as a mentor to all the new teachers. She was a generous team member, sharing ideas, resources and teaching strategies openly. Luz is truly a master teacher, whom I was so lucky to learn from.”
It all began when Ms. Giraldo joined the department in 1988.
Back when Dwight was on the East side, Ms Giraldo taught in a traditional way, lecturing on Spanish grammar rules, and having students read short stories, translate, and conjugate verbs. This conventional method started to shift when new technology played a bigger role in educational environments, and Ms. Giraldo and other Dwight teachers received the first few professional development lessons about using the latest technology — a computer. Soon after this, in 1993, Dwight merged with the Anglo-American School on the West Side, and the International Baccalaureate was introduced into the curriculum, which intrigued Giraldo and further affected her techniques. She said, “The richness of the program was like magic to me. It opened my mind in a way I had never imagined.”
Once the IB started, Ms. Giraldo was even more inspired to stray from the ordinary classroom structure, proposing projects that would expose them to real-world, Spanish-speaking environments. Becoming a DP Spanish Teacher and having the curriculum change ignited a new spark in Ms. Girlado’s creativity. She realized that teaching the students about what it means to not only speak Spanish, but to be fully immersed in the culture, such as the music, the food, the art, and more, would help create a global citizen, a person comfortable speaking the language, and existing in the place itself.
So, as a young teacher, and at a time when no one was doing it, Ms. Giraldo approached Chancellor Stephen Spahn with an out-of-the-box idea: taking students to Colombia for a whole month, and having them sit in on lectures at a school in the city of Manizales. He agreed, and it was the first of her many memorable language trips.
Ms. Giraldo continued to provide her students with incredible opportunities in addition to regular class time. She took a group of her IB students on a vacation to enjoy the winter in Chile, going to classes at the University of La Serena to study Spanish at a higher level. During this trip, students were exposed to special opportunities, such as visiting an exclusive astronomers’ observatory on the Andes mountains. After this, she hosted a Peru trip in which students attended classes in an IB school in Lima.They also participated in community service, building houses for the underprivileged, living with Peruvian families from the school.
These trips have been a great influence on the students, leaving a meaningful mark on their lives. Many of her students chose career paths with international companies for which they travel to Latin American countries, feeling confident that they can speak Spanish comfortably and understand the culture on a deeper level.
Ms. Giraldo explained how fulfilling it was to notice that her Spanish class had a ripple effect. “Nothing makes a language teacher happier than seeing how students improve their ability to speak and understand the language in various circumstances. It is most rewarding when they come back to visit from college and say they are taking Spanish and planning to study abroad.”
Part of what makes Ms. Giraldo’s teaching extraordinary is her caring nature that both the Dwight teachers and students appreciate. During her tenure, she made great friendships and bonds with all the Dwight teachers, administrators, and staff whose positive influence shaped her journey in invaluable ways.
Jada Morgan ’18, currently External Relations Professional at IBM, formed some of her most cherished Dwight memories in Ms. Giraldo’s Spanish class.
To this day, she has a playlist full of reggaeton (Spanish-language songs) titled “NC6,” the name of Ms Giraldo’s classroom, which felt like a second home to the students taking her class. Jada said, “Señora Giraldo had a way of making us feel like we were her family. Our class was so close-knit and she had a way of helping us foster that closeness to make learning Spanish fun and comfortable. ”
Now, after 37 years of exceptional teaching, she will be retiring and moving on to her next adventure.
The students who took Spanish this year were honored to be in her last class. Eli Schoenfeld ’25 said, “Ms. Giraldo encouraged me to continue learning the complexities of the Spanish language, which motivated me to push myself and grow as a speaker. Being in her last class ever feels incredibly meaningful. I feel lucky to be part of the final chapter of her teaching journey.”
Ms. Giraldo’s kindness and warmth will be remembered fondly. The Dwight community is forever grateful, and we wish her well on her next adventure!
