Srta. Hernández hasn’t always been a U.S. resident she’s lived in three different countries. Her life story starts in her home country of Spain. “I was born and raised in Spain and studied Translation and Interpreting at the University of Alicante,” Hernández begins, “After earning my bachelor’s degree, I received a scholarship to teach Spanish in England for an academic year.” Most of her family lives in Alicante, Spain. Hernández is proud of her heritage and home, as she introduces it to freshmen in Humanities every year. She picked up and moved countries for the first time. This led her to Warwick, England, which kickstarted her career in teaching. Her initial role was as a Spanish Language Assistant. “My role as a Spanish Language Assistant focused on supporting the lead teacher in class and helping students improve their speaking skills,” Hernández describes, ¨I also taught my class of seniors who had an advanced level of Spanish, allowing us to discuss Spanish cultural topics in depth.¨ During this time, she stayed in Leamington Spa and lived with a lovely lady named Ann James. After all of her experience as a Spanish Language Assistant, she decided that education was the career for her. Ironically enough, she needed more Spanish credits. This requirement led her to DePaul University in Chicago. She majored in World Language Education with a concentration in the Spanish language. Hernández reminisced time in Chicago, “My time in Chicago was memorable, even if I don’t miss the windy days.”
She finally graduated from Depaul University on her birthday, which was a fun bonus for her graduation day. “My parents traveled from Spain to celebrate with me,” she recounts, “and shortly after graduation, I moved to Springfield, Illinois, and immediately began working at Rochester High School.” After all of her amazing experiences of living in Spain, England, and now in the U.S., why would she choose to move to Springfield, Illinois? While it is a bit cliche, she found love. Hernández met her husband in Chicago. Not too long after, they were engaged and she decided to move with him to Springfield where his family lived. When they made the move, Hernández received a teaching job at Rochester High School and immediately began. She teaches Spanish 2-4 and teaches Humanities to freshmen. Many students love her and find joy in her classes and personality.
When asked about her opinion of the U.S., she had quite a bit to share. “ I enjoy living in the United States—it’s a great country overall, especially here in Springfield,” Laura starts, “There are a few things I would change, though.” These changes ranged from time changed to the amount of sugar in food. “The food culture, the reliance on driving, and the time differences in our countries.” In Spain, our time zone was shifted during Francisco Franco’s regime in 1940 to align with Germany’s Central European Time (CET) rather than England’s Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), which we originally followed.” In this time measure, they do not practice daylight savings time. These ideas may seem crazy to Americans, but this is regular life for Europeans. There are even bonuses with the time zone Hernández explains, “Because of this shift, the sun sets much later, allowing for an extra hour of daylight after school to enjoy the day.” All Americans could use an extra hour of sunshine.
There was one main complaint, “I dislike how sugar seems to be everywhere around us because it is so tempting and addictive, and it can be detrimental to our health.” This is sadly the truth, as 40.3% of Americans are considered obese whereas 32% of Spaniards are considered obese. This information comes from the World Review for obesity rates. “Every month, there seems to be a reason to indulge in candy or sweets,” she explains, “whether it’s Halloween, Easter, St. Patrick’s Day parades, school events, Christmas, or Thanksgiving.” These holidays that promote sugar don’t happen nearly as much or often in Spain. They still have sweets in Spain, but they aren’t prioritized nearly as much. Even outside of holidays, sugar rages in the supermarkets. “They often contain more sugar than what you would typically find in Spain.” Hernández comments. Even with these disadvantages or cons, they’re still so much she loves about America. Specifically, she mentions: “What I love most about Springfield is my immediate family, my husband, my two kids, and my in-laws, who are incredibly supportive and always willing to help.” She’s been able to build a life for herself here that’s been incredibly successful and rewarding. She also appreciates being able to explore the area, even if there isn’t much fun in Springfield. She even appreciates not having any of the threats of hurricanes, wildfires, or earthquakes in Illinois. Most of all, she loves teaching and her students. She publicizes her love by saying, “ Most of them are wonderful individuals and dedicated learners.” She is beloved by many at Rochester High School, and makes a wonderful impact on all of her students; however, she does miss Spain sometimes. “Although I now have two little nephews in Spain, which makes me sad that I can’t spend more time with them” she explains, “I cherish the family we have here.” This story is incredible to hear and is quite heartwarming. She has many talents, which include being able to speak many different languages. Some of these include Spanish, French, Russian and Catalan. Hernández describes herself and many of her students as resilient and continuing to move forward no matter what.