Position: Spanish Teacher

Email: iglesisj@milwaukee.k12.wi.us

Ms. Iglesias was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, a small island in the Caribbean that is a territory of the United States. Her first language is Spanish, which is why she feels more comfortable speaking in her native language. She believes this helps her understand her students as they begin learning Spanish as a second language, and this is why she encourages them to practice the language every day.

She completed her bachelor’s degree at the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus, a public university and one of the most important educational institutions on the island. Ms. Iglesias worked as a teacher in Puerto Rico from 2007 to 2016 before becoming a teacher supervisor at the Boys and Girls Club in Puerto Rico until November 2017.

In September 2017, Puerto Rico experienced the strongest hurricane in its history. The island was devastated, with everything destroyed, thousands of lives lost, and the entire island left without communication or basic services. After spending three months supporting people in need, Ms. Iglesias decided to start anew in Milwaukee.

In January 2018, she began working as a Spanish teacher at the Milwaukee School of Languages and Rufus King High School, an experience that prepared her for her current role at Pulaski School. This is her third year teaching Spanish at Pulaski, and she is excited to contribute to the growth of her first language here in the United States. Over the past few years, she has been working toward obtaining her DPI license, and she is proud to have officially received it. She is grateful to be able to teach both in Wisconsin and Puerto Rico.

In her personal life, Ms. Iglesias is a wife, daughter, mother, and friend. She has been married for one year to a wonderful man and has three children: Sebastian (13), Adrian (9), and Oriana (7). She loves spending time with her family, listening to music, and socializing with friends. Since she has no family in Wisconsin, she enjoys traveling to Puerto Rico to visit her parents and other relatives, though she sometimes misses them dearly. She loves summer, the beach, and music, especially salsa, merengue, and urban genres. Additionally, she enjoys reading, with her favorite authors being Isabel Allende and Paulo Coelho.