Greensboro College Alumna Wins State Award in Foreign-Language Teaching
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Maria Madrid, who received her M.A. in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages from Greensboro College earlier this year, has been named the Incredible World Language Teacher of the Year by the Foreign Language Association of North Carolina.
Madrid teaches a second-grade class in the Spanish-immersion program at Elm City Elementary School in Elm City, N.C.
“I wasn’t expecting it at all,” Madrid told The Wilson Times. “For me, it was a real honor. I couldn’t be more excited. I was super, super surprised.”
The director of Greensboro College’s M.A.-TESOL program, assistant professor Michelle Plaisance, noted that Madrid’s having won the college’s Outstanding Graduate Student Award earlier this year presaged her current accomplishment.
“This does not surprise me at all!” Plaisance said. “Maria’s care and commitment to her students, and to teaching in general, are remarkable. We saw this dedication in the way she approached her studies at Greensboro College, as well.
“I am pleased to see her hard work recognized and doubt this is the last time we will see Maria in the news.”
Madrid, a native of Spain, has taught for eight years, the past four in the U.S., where she came via Participate, a teacher-exchange program.
The Burlington-based Foreign Language Association of North Carolina seeks “to promote opportunities for all students from kindergarten through post graduate studies to develop a high level of competence in at least one language in addition to their own; to provide leadership, support and service to those committed to language learning; and to coordinate the efforts of all those involved in education to make language learning in programs of excellence a reality for all.”
Greensboro College’s M.A. in TESOL program prepares and qualifies students to apply for full-time teaching positions in a variety of academic settings including community colleges, private language academies, K-12 schools*, university-based intensive English programs, and non-profit service organizations.
For more information on the program, contact Plaisance at 336-272-7102, ext. 5285, or email michelle.plaisance@greensboro.edu.
Greensboro College provides a liberal arts education grounded in the traditions of the United Methodist Church and fosters the intellectual, social, and, spiritual development of all students while supporting their individual needs.
Founded in 1838 and located in downtown Greensboro, the college enrolls about 1,000 students from 29 states and territories, the District of Columbia, and seven foreign countries in its undergraduate liberal-arts program and four master’s degree programs. In addition to rigorous academics and a well-supported Honors program, the school features an 18-sport NCAA Division III athletic program and dozens of service and recreational opportunities.
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