By Payton Tholstrup

Picture from Facebook

Clay Center Community High School (CCCHS) welcomed two student teachers this year in Julie Hughes’ classroom.

Susana Palma-Menendez and Roque Giler-Vasquez (who goes by Rocky) are student teachers from Ecuador. They have made their way to CCCHS through Kansas State University, which placed six students from Ecuador in Kansas schools this year as part of a new program. Both student teachers will be with Mrs. Hughes for the 2024-2025 school year.

Coincidentally, Palma-Menendez and Giler-Vasquez grew up just 45 minutes from each other. However, they did not meet until they came to Clay Center. Giler-Vasquez was in the tourism, hospitality, and agriculture industries. Before that, he taught English as a second language in his hometown of Portoviejo. Palma-Menendez was teaching English as a foreign language.

Now, the two are changing it up by teaching Spanish to English-speaking students. Although it’s a change, the methodology is similar. According to Palma-Menendez, she would be teaching a classroom of 35-40 students in Ecuador. “The size of the small classes here are amazing. Also, the technology here is wonderful. There are many more resources.”

Giler-Vasquez is here with his wife and 4-year-old daughter. They live at Apollo Towers. Palma-Menendez is living with C.L. and Judy Snodgrass.

While both will leave their options open, they said they could see themselves teaching Spanish in a Kansas high school next year, which is the program’s goal.

“I love the energy that they are bringing to the classroom. Ecuador opens a lot of minds to places that our students haven’t been,” Hughes said.