On the bustling Sixth Street downtown, Señora A—aka Spanish teacher Telvi Altamirano Cancino—stands amidst the music and sparkling colors, preparing to lead her school into the crowd. The smells of street food waft through the air as Altamirano-Cancino marches into the Oct. 26 Día de los Muertos Parade.

Altamirano has taught Spanish at McCallum since 2016, but interestingly enough, being a Spanish teacher wasn‘t her original plan.

“I actually fell into it [being a Spanish teacher] by accident,” Altamirano said. “It was just a job I wanted to try, and I just fell in love with it, and I was like, ‘This is the job for me.’”

McCallum is a very diverse school, with people from many different backgrounds. Altamirano’s classes reflect that. She has various grade levels, ages and prior Spanish experience in her class. This variety of students is something Altamirano not only embraces but encourages. Altamirano says she loves her job, especially because she can share her language and culture with her students.

“Culture is important to people because it makes us more accepting of others,” Altamirano said. “It builds empathy and that’s something there’s a lack of right now, so I think it’s an important part of building ourselves as human beings, to interact with each other.”

Many of Altamirano’s students appreciate this inclusion of culture in their classes.

“Señora A does a good job of including certain projects or things from Mexican and Spanish culture,” ninth-grader Vera Petrowsky said. Petrowsky is in Altamirano’s Spanish 1 class and loves all the holiday-themed projects they do.

“We made skulls for Day of the Dead, and then there’s masks in her rooms that kids made last year,” Petrowsky said. “We also played Loteria on Halloween.”

Along with the projects that she includes in her class, Altamirano is also involved in another cultural inclusion at McCallum. She began helping Juana Gun, the former Ballet Folklórico teacher, when she first arrived at McCallum, and once Gun retired, “she asked me to take over, and you know I couldn’t say no,” Altamirano said.

“It would’ve been really sad for the program to die and for that piece to be gone,” Altamirano said.  “I think Ballet Folklórico is one of those important cultural pieces here at McCallum.”

She’s been leading it individually ever since. She has practice every Tuesday afternoon and schedules many events outside of school, including Día de los Muertos parades and performances at neighboring elementary schools. Altamirano plans in-school events like the Cinco de Mayo showcase and a school quinceañera.

“We help the girls who’ve never had their quinceañera get their quinceañera!” Altamirano said.

This will be the seventh year they have hosted this event, and Altamirano says that there are many positive aspects to the event.

“I want to say that’s my favorite event because not only do we get to give back to our McCallum community, but also we get to share that cultural experience with the campus,” Altamirano said.

Ballet Folklórico benefits many different people within our school and allows people to connect to their own culture.

“I’m part Nicaraguean, so most of my family has done Ballet Folklórico,” freshman Zamea Smith said.

Smith became interested in the club after seeing it on her freshman tour of the school. So far, she has had a very positive experience.

“My favorite part of ballet is honestly learning all the dances,” Smith said. “They’re so fun to do and so are the performances. I love seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces, and of course meeting new people.”

Smith says that no dance experience is necessary, and it’s a great way to connect with your fellow students. She loves everything Señora A adds to the club, including the snacks she provides.

Overall, Altamirano is an ambassador for our campus on multiple fronts, working daily to make people feel included and learn new things.

“People should join [Ballet Folklórico] because it is just so fun! Señora A makes it even better,” Smith said. “ She is amazing. I mean, I even babysit her daughter. She is just so awesome.”