Cloe is beyond excited to open up the doors and officially become “Amigos” with you! At Amigos, above everything, we value the safety and happiness of all students, staff, and families. Happy teachers and staff make the school thrive!  Cloe has years of experience as a Director of a Spanish immersion preschool and has been working with children her entire life.

Cloe graduated summa cum laude at Boston University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and Spanish. She also earned her Masters of Education for School Psychology at Temple University, graduating top of the class.

Cloe has been studying Spanish for over 15 years. She fell in love with the Spanish language and culture after spending a year living abroad in the beautiful city of Salamanca in Spain. She attended the Universidad de Salamanca, the oldest college in Europe. Cloe has “Amigos” all over the world and truly believes that “los amigos se convierten en familia.”

 

When Cloe was in preschool…

Maestra Eliana was born in Colombia. She is an only child, but grew up on a farm surrounded by family. She loves animals and exploring nature. Eli’s interest in education began in Colombia when she was younger; she was raised by two teachers, her grams and mom.

In 2013, Eli earned her bachelor’s degree in early childhood education. Since then, she has been working with young children as a preschool and kindergarden teacher.  Motivated to further her education and English skills, she moved to the US in 2015.

Maestra Eliana believes that through play and art, she can capture children’s attention and imagination. She is beyond excited and proud to be a part of Amigos Preschool, and she cannot wait to meet and become friends with everyone!

 

When Eli was in preschool…

Erika was born at the Jersey Shore, but moved to Philadelphia when she was four years old. She grew up in Cheltenham with her younger sister, Paige.

Erika attended the University of Hartford, where she majored in communications, but quickly changed her major to elementary education. She continued her education at Saint Joseph’s University, where she earned her masters in education. She worked for the school district of Philadelphia for 8 years and taught kindergarten through fourth grade.

Erika currently enjoys traveling, taking trips to the shore, and spending time with her husband, Chad and two children, Hannah and Evan. Erika loves children and is so excited to be a part of the Amigos family!

 

When Erika was in preschool…

Maestra Nancy is from Caracas, Venezuela. She traveled to the United States over two years ago and has lived in Philadelphia ever since. She graduated from high school in Caracas and studied for 5 years at the Universidad Central de Venezuela, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in social communication.

Before coming to the United States, Maestra Nancy worked at the Preschool of Instituto Andes, one of the top bilingual schools in Caracas. She worked at another Spanish immersion preschool in Philadelphia for a year and a half.

Maestra Nancy is very happy working at Amigos, where she encounters a warm, friendly environment among the staff and families. She thoroughly enjoys teaching Spanish to the children and seeing how they learn more of the language each and every day. Maestra Nancy loves to read, travel, and spend time on the beach!

 

When Nancy was in preschool…

Spicy was Cloe’s Wheaten Terrier baby for 13 years. He was a trained service dog, who loved being around all the children at school. He was very excited to become our mascot at Amigos; however, Spicy passed away February 2018. We miss Spicy very much. His playful, gentle spirit will remain, and his beautiful face will certainly decorate the walls of the office!

 

When Spicy was in preschool…

Maestra Elaine grew up in a Dominican household and was immersed in the Spanish language and culture her entire life. She has a background in printmaking and fine arts from Temple University. Elaine worked as a teacher in another Spanish Immersion preschool for 3 years.

Her favorite part of working with children is doing art and allowing students to express themselves utilizing various mediums. Apart from teaching at Amigos Preschool, she works and volunteers at Spiral Q Puppet Theater.

 

When Elaine was in preschool…

Nati was born in the US, but grew up in Argentina with her 3 brothers. After high school, she moved to Canada and attended college at New Brunswick Bible Institute, graduating with a Bachelors in Theology.

Following graduation, Nati ventured to Philadelphia and began nannying. She became a preschool teacher at a Spanish immersion preschool and worked there for over two years. Natalie loves teaching the littlest ones!

In her free time, Nati enjoys spending time with family and friends. She has a passion for traveling and exploring new places. She also very much enjoys reading. Nati is beyond excited to be a maestra at Amigos!

   

When Nati was in preschool…

Maestra Ceci was born and raised in Ecuador. She was an only child, but enjoyed spending a lot of time with her many cousins. She started working and taking care of children when she was a teenager.

Maestra Ceci currently lives in Philadelphia with her husband and three daughters. She spent almost two years working as a teacher at another preschool. She loves teaching and being a mom to her three girls. Family is very important to her!

Maestra Ceci chose to work with children at Amigos Preschool because she loves sharing her culture and watching the students learn and grow each day! She also enjoys the warm, friendly environment of the school.

  When Ceci was in preschool…

Raquel is a clinical and child psychologist with a teaching certification. Her greatest passion has always been working with children; therefore, when she finished studying clinical psychology she started at an institution that helped children with special needs by providing educational support in schools.

Raquel earned various degrees in the field:

• Child Psychology at the University of the Caribbean (UNICARIBE, RD),
• Master in Child Psychology at the Technical Institute of Applied Studies (ITEAP, Malaga, Spain)
• Specialty and Masters in Clinical Psychology at the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo (UASD, RD)
• Qualified teacher at the Universidad Católica Nordestana (UCNE, RD)
• Inclusive Education at the Catholic University Mother and Teacher (PUCAMAIMA, RD)
• Diploma of Culture of Peace of Democracy in and from the School of Teacher Training Institute Salome Ureña (ISFODOSU, RD) and CINDE (Manizales, Colombia)

“You find great satisfaction when you help people grow as a human being”  

When Raquel was in preschool…

Maestra Stephanie was born and raised in Puerto Rico and is the youngest of 3 siblings. After graduating with her bachelor’s degree in Psychology in Puerto Rico; Stephanie moved to the United States to complete a Master’s in Counseling.    During the completion of her Master’s degree Stephanie worked in the school setting specifically supporting children with special needs. Being bi-lingual Stephanie always worked with the Hispanic families in the school. Stephanie always had an interest to work in the school setting since her mother was also a teacher.   Stephanie is happy to be working at Amigos as a teacher!  

When Stephanie was in preschool…

Maestra Maria is originally from Venezuela, and has an associates in Phlebotomy. After becoming a mom 7 years ago and having to learn child development and appropriate child learning, she felt the need to be a part of the education of the first years of their lives. 

In 2017, she earned her CDA and has been working in the Early Childhood Center at the Philadelphia YMCA for the past 3 years. She believes that these years are the most important in children’s development and will determine so much about their future.  Maria loves traveling and being a part of different cultures and sharing her own. Being bilingual herself, teaching her kids at home is just as important to her as regular education since the English she knows today was from her exposure to it in her early life.  I’m happy to be at Amigos and be part of this type of education environment.

When Maria was in preschool…

Maestra Delaney grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia, but ended up in the city when she started as a student at Temple University. Now in her Junior year, she double majors in Communications and Spanish. 

Delaney took an interest in learning Spanish in high school and attended a one month immersion program in Malaga, Spain. In Spring 2019, she studied for a semester in Oviedo, Spain, where she improved her language skills and fell in love with the culture. After returning from five months abroad, Delaney began working at Amigos.   Still a student of Spanish, Delaney loves learning alongside the Amigos students everyday.  

When Delaney was in preschool…