MEET YOUR CHILD'S SPANISH TEACHER

Meet Your Child's Spanish Teacher

If your child takes Spanish through O'Neill Language Academy, learn about their teacher below!
If you are interested in joining our team of teachers, contact us at [email protected] or 651.264.0404

Miss Theresa

Hello! My name is Theresa Gunderson and I am the Co-Founder and director of O'Neill Language Academy. My experience teaching Spanish spans early childhood education, elementary education, middle school, high school and adults. I am also a Positive Classroom Management Coach, Teacher Trainer, and author of hundreds of second language lessons. Most recently I've developed the Teach & Learn Spanish curriculum. My husband and I are raising our two children in a bilingual home.

I graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Spanish, an Elementary Education Degree and a Master’s Degree in Teach Second Languages and Cultures Education with a K-12 licensure in Spanish and ESL.

My passion is teaching Spanish to children in a way that is, creative, FUN and meaningful to everyday life. I love being silly with kids and making them smile and laugh. Also important to me and our team of teachers is insuring that every child feels special and important. Feeling loved and having fun while learning Spanish is the perfect combination for children and makes them excited to learn and eager to return to class each week!

Miss Allie

¡Hola!

My name is Allie Thom, and I am very excited to be working with your kiddos! I am currently enrolled in a master’s program for Biological Sciences at the University of Minnesota. I graduated from Concordia College in Moorhead, MN with degrees in both biology and Spanish.

I am excited to combine my Spanish degree and my love of kids with this opportunity to teach Spanish! I think it is so important to learn another language and at this young age there is so much room for growth and learning which is very exciting! The energy and excitement these kids bring to class is so inspiring to me! I have had the pleasure of teaching preschool age Sunday School and I am grateful to have another opportunity to work with this age group!

Miss Celeste

Hola!

My name is Celeste Bravo and I would love to share with you a little bit about me and my background with teaching and the Spanish language. My mother’s family is from rural Idaho and my father’s family is from rural Mexico, so I have had the wonderful experience of growing up in a bilingual household. My upbringing affords me a unique understanding of language from the perspective of the young student and this background has helped me to appreciate and love both of my cultures. I am a Senior at BSU and will graduate with my BFA in Art Education with a minor in Psychology. For the past 8 years, I have been an Early Childhood Educator and have taught at both New Horizon Academy and Polaris Learning Centers. I cannot express in words what a joy and privilege it is to teach Preschool! These fun and energetic students remind me every day how blessed I am to be able to share my love of language, learning, and culture with them.
I look forward to teaching your child Spanish!

Miss Marisol

Hola!

My name is Marisol Ortiz. I am from Michoacán, Mexico. I have spent half of my life living here in Minnesota and the other half in Mexico. I really enjoy teaching Spanish to children. I love sharing my first language and a little bit of my culture in every class. In my free time I love to take care of my two beautiful nieces and my little nephew.

I am currently a college student and I am pursuing a degree in Education. I also have a MN Gold Bilingual Seal for Spanish from the MN World Language Proficiency.

It is a pleasure for me to be your child's Spanish teacher :)

Miss Sarah

Hello! My name is Sarah, and I am very excited to be teaching Spanish to little ones.

With a BA in Spanish and a MA in Hispanic Literature, I have been teaching college Spanish for twenty-two years. Throughout the years I have taught elementary Spanish as an extracurricular and began my teaching career working in daycares and preschools. I started out my college years studying Early Childhood Education and adore teaching young students!

I love the enthusiasm the little ones bring to the Spanish classroom. They are always teaching me a little something with each class session. It’s an honor to be your child’s Spanish teacher!

Miss Liliana

Hello! My name is Liliana. My passion for teaching started at an early age. I begin working as an assistant teacher when I was 17 years old. One year later I decided to go to College and study Graphic Design but after I graduated I couldn’t stop thinking how much I missed teaching so I went back to the classroom and studied to become a kindergarten teacher.

I taught for 8 years until my husband and I started our family. I decided to stay at home with my own kids but after two years still missing being around children I started working as a Kids Party Coordinator in Mexico.

Now I live in the US with my husband and two children.
I am so excited to have found this amazing job and to have the opportunity once again to teach children.

I am very excited to make learning Spanish fun for your children!

Señor Bryan

Hello hello!! My name is Bryan Gamboa and I am absolutely ecstatic to be teaching Spanish to your children! I was born in Mexico City, Mexico and moved to the United States when I was 5! This last May, I went traveled back to Mexico and got to revisit everything I knew and loved in my first 5 years of living. Mexico City was a magical experience and I cannot wait to visit there more often!

My experience working with children includes For 4 years working for the Waukee Community School District. I was a child care provider and then I was promoted to On-Site Supervisor where I ran my own before and after school program with 150 kids (grades K-5) and 15 staff members. This is where my love for kids began. Every day was a new adventure and I cherished my time there. I’m also involved with Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Iowa. My little brother's name is Carlos. I take him to explore the many things to do in Des Moines!

I am very excited to make learning Spanish fun for your children!

Miss Marcela

My name is Marcela and I was born and raised in the picturesque city of Mexico. With dual citizenship, my values and traditions represent the fusion of two countries, Mexico and Spain. I came to Minnesota in 2015 and I was glad to discover the beautiful landscapes, the wildlife and the quality of their people.

I have a background in early childhood education and experience working with children from 12 months to 5 years of age.  I believe in the importance of exposing young children to a multicultural learning environment.  What I enjoyed the most is to teach Spanish and engage with my students through dynamic lessons, playtime and sharing with them the beauty of the spanish speaking cultures.  The most rewarding part of my job is to see the smile on a child’s face and knowing they are having a good time while learning a second language.

Education:
A.S. in Clinical Psychology at Universidad del Centro de Mexico
A.S. in Arts with emphasis in Psychology
Child Development Certification
Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology at Metropolitan in progress  graduation date: August, 2019

Miss Mary

My name is Mary McCoy and I am so excited to share the beautiful Spanish language with your curious children! I learned most of my Spanish while serving 2 years in Peace Corps Nicaragua where I was immersed in the culture and language.

I have taught as a preschool Spanish immersion teacher which gave me skills to provide fun and dynamic lessons to make learning Spanish feel like play time!

Currently, I am also a Certified Child life Specialist at Mayo Clinic where I work with children and families preparing them for procedures, promoting play in the hospital and assisting create positive coping techniques.

Mary is excited to share her passion and excitement for learning Spanish with her students!

Señor Isra

Hello, my name is Israel Perez Medina and I was born in Madrid, Spain and raised in Zaragoza, Spain so Spanish is my native tongue. Eight years ago my family and I moved to Rochester MN, when my wife accepted a position at Mayo Clinic. I came to the US without speaking a word of English and that's when I realized how important languages are. Since that day I have been preparing to be a Spanish teacher to share my passion about languages and cultures!

I have been working with kids ages 4-18 for the last 18 years as a soccer coach and now as a Spanish teacher. Working with kids is a pleasure! I have a Spanish Philology Bachelor's Degree from the University of Burgos (Spain) and a Physical Education Bachelor's Degree from the University of Zaragoza (Spain)

Because we are living in another country, my family is everything to me. I wanted to share this photo with you to show you how proud I am of my family and that our favorite thing to do together is visit new places!

I am so happy to be your child's Spanish teacher.