Wendy Lopez Elizondo traveled more than 800 miles last year to face her biggest professional challenge — teaching in the United States. Armed with just two suitcases and far away from her Mexican home, international teacher Lopez Elizondo came to Crain Elementary School in Victoria, Texas, to work in the district’s bilingual program.

“I wanted to support bilingual students, children who, like me, speak Spanish at home. But leaving my family and comfort zone in Mexico was not easy,” said Lopez Elizondo, who had already taught for four years in Mexico.

She worried about how she would fit in with American culture, whether she would be effective in her new job, and even how well she would connect with her students. Although Lopez Elizondo has dual citizenship in the United States and Mexico, she had spent all but one year of her life in Mexico. She even worried about her English, noting that while she speaks her second language well, using it “professionally every day was intimidating at first.”

Now, nearing the end of Victoria’s school year, Lopez Elizondo calls her first year a success, highlighting a period full of acceptance, kindness, new friends, and, most importantly, effectiveness at her job.

“The students light up when they realize that I understand their language and culture. It creates a real connection,” she said, regarding the impact of the program bringing international teachers to Texas.

It’s a high stakes fight to educate bilingual children in Victoria, and Texas as a whole. Because of a change in a state rule, the number of bilingual students in this small city has soared 40 percent in the last two years.

While more than 300 school districts in the state report a paucity of bilingual teachers, the situation in Victoria is even more acute. The 13,000-student district faces stiff competition for these teachers from better-paying schools in bigger cities. (Victoria is about two hours southwest of Houston and two hours southeast of San Antonio.)

The Unique Exchange Program Bringing International Teachers to Texas

So, three years ago Victoria created a program with the Mexican college Escuela Normal Superior de Jalisco, where school graduates could take some additional courses and apply to teach in Victoria. The program began with just one teacher two years ago, but this year Lopez Elizondo and four other teachers came to Victoria to work. Four worked at Crain’s bilingual program while the fifth worked in the district’s special education department.

Read the full article about bilingual education in Texas by Wayne DOrio at EdSurge.