Fund for Teachers | My Passport

Tina Vasquez

Charlottesville High School, Charlottesville VA

Participate in the Gross Global Happiness Summit at the United Nations University for Peace in Costa Rica, in order to explore social-emotional learning (SEL) strategies to promote wellbeing and academic success of Newcomer high school refugee and immigrant English Learners, and to develop new approaches that build on the assets of multicultural, multilingual learners.

Where I've Been

  • San Jose, Costa Rica

My Fellowship in Images

Over a hundred amazing humans came together at the UN University for Peace. Together we explored strategies to bring greater peace, happiness, and well-being into the world.
The UPeace campus was inspirational, filled with United Nations member flags and statues of global peacemakers like Ghandi. Diazina become a mentor for me at the summit and taught me about trauma transformation.
My homestay with Suni, her mother, and her 2 young children was very special. Ricky (my housemate from India) and I enjoyed teaching the children to play Yatzee and chatting with Suni about life, all in Spanish!
Six of my colleagues and I participated in a unique travel experience. We truly bonded and now have an active online action group. Here we attended a workshop on traditional cacao production in the rainforest. Experiential learning at its finest!
This workshop on forest therapy was incredible! Simple strategies can have profound impacts on emotional regulation and concentration. I am already applying the techniques of guided observation and facilitated sharing to my Newcomer classes!
The Walking Palm is a powerful metaphor for me. Although this tree appears fixed, it is constantly growing new roots and shedding old ones, thus slowly moving toward the sunlight! It reminds me there is always a path forward.

Igniting Your Personal and Professional Growth

Describe one or two, specific learning experiences from your fellowship. In words, show us this experience and explain why it was powerful.

My experiences at the University for Peace were transformative. The space itself was uplifting, with inspirational art, indoor-outdoor classrooms, and peace-themed poetry in each bathroom. It was powerful to connect with professionals from around the globe around common goals of supporting happiness and well-being. Sessions such as "Re-imagining Education," "The Power of Self-Directed Neuroplasticity" and "Flourishing" gave me ideas to apply to my classes, my community and my life.

What did you learn about yourself? What did you learn professionally?

My greatest learning was around the power of co-creation. I am involved in many projects at my school, uplifting students as a staff sponsor. However, this experience showed me the powerful synergy of envisioning and co-creating together with other professionals from different backgrounds and perspectives. I discovered that I thrive in a small group focused on a common goal, that I have a strength in vision work and facilitation of ideas. I intend to apply these strengths to new projects.

What were some unplanned or unexpected experiences or outcomes of your fellowship? Or, how did the fellowship you crafted differ from the actual learning experience?

I was awarded my fellowship in 2020, just as the COVID pandemic began. My initial plan was to present at the International Colloquium of Language, Culture and Identity in Spain. However, that colloquium was postponed over and over, until it was ultimately canceled. I was forced to research other possibilities to support my goal of supporting the SEL and wellbeing of Newcomer ELs. I discovered the University for Peace, and am filled with gratitude to have connected with this community.

Impacting Your Classroom, School and Community

Outline specific plans you have to implement your fellowship and reach your student goals.

I have already taken learning around using storytelling to build empathy and applied it to deepening the impact of an annual Diversity Assembly that I organize. I will be incorporating the healing power of forest therapy, based on the art of shinrin-yoku (forest bathing) into my Newcomer ENL curriculum. Students will be able to go to, or simply visualize, a spot in the woods to feel safe and centered. I will be writing new lessons with guided observations and collaborative writing tasks.

What is one way you can leverage your fellowship to create one authentic learning experience for students? (e.g. hands-on learning, projects, community engagement)

I found research from UC-Riverside on the positive impacts of writing gratitude letters on high school students to be quite compelling. After just 4 weeks of writing weekly letters, 9th and 10th grade students reported greater motivation, sense of capability, and life satisfaction, as well as healthier diets, throughout the entire academic year. I plan to launch a project with Newcomer English Learners to write letters of gratitude to school staff in 2024-25.

How, specifically, will your fellowship extend beyond your classroom? (e.g. families, school-at-large, afterschool groups, surrounding community, colleagues, etc.)

My goal is to focus on collaborations and co-creation this next year. I have made plans to collaborate with an art teacher on redesigning a school courtyard to become a more tranquil and comforting space and to collaborate with the theater teacher on a year-long story project pairing theater students with English Learners. I will also be working with the International Rescue Committee to increase family engagement. I am currently looking for partners to start a new student Peacemakers group!