Elisabeth Rosario

In her 20th year of teaching, Spanish teacher Elisabeth Rosario joined the language department from Australia. She moved to the United States as a teen from Colombia and now she teaches Spanish 2 and 3. 

What did you do this summer?

This summer I celebrated my daughter’s 15th birthday, which is a big deal in Hispanic culture. The birthday is called a quinceañera when a girl turns 15; the girl goes from being a girl to a young lady. We celebrated with a big family gathering. The girl dresses like a princess and there’s all these rituals that we do to represent the love that we have for her. My family came from all over the place, from other countries and from all over America to celebrate. 

What were you doing in Australia?

My husband’s job allowed him to go and do a job over there in Australia. We moved the family there for seven years. I was teaching Spanish in the public school system there. There’s things I like from there and I miss it, but I also miss living here. Australia is really far away, so it was really tough to see my family and loved ones. It’s nice to come back to the states and reunite with the family.

Did you learn Spanish or did you already know it growing up?

I already knew Spanish growing up. I was born in Colombia and I moved to the United States when I was a teenager and finished school here. I went to college here and worked for Fairfax County for over 20 years now.

If you weren’t teaching, What career do you think you would be doing instead?

I always loved helping people. I really liked psychology when I was in college, so I took some classes. I think I would probably doing something with psychology or social work or something like that.

What is one thing you like about Chantilly?

I was teaching at Langley High School for 15 years before I moved to Australia. I like the diversity at Chantilly; I love that we have students and staff from all over the world and backgrounds. I really love that about Chantilly and the school spirit, I think, is one of those schools that really have a lot of school spirit. 

If you had to give someone advice about learning Spanish, what would it be?

I would say to look at the bigger picture. That it is not just the language, but it’s also about learning the culture, our way of life. I think just learning a language allows you to see how other people look at the world. When you take Spanish or any other language, it’s not just about the actual language, it is about learning how other people think and live their lives.