Teacher Feature: Evelyn Navarro

When Ms. Navarro was younger, her active imagination made her want to be a writer. In high school, her fascination and curiosity with character analyzation changed her career interest to psychology. Ms. Navarro loved stories throughout her childhood, whether it was reading them or imagining them.

From preschool to freshman year, Ms. Navarro attended the same school. It “was one of the best experiences I had as a student” Ms. Navarro said. This allowed her to create strong bonds and memories with her friends, such as her fifth grade softball team beating the freshmen. Ms. Navarro didn’t have as close of friends during high school, but shared multiple memorable experiences, such as practicing somersaults and playing in a handball tournament. “I participated in poetry recitals and I even won a medal”, she exclaimed.

Ms. Navarro attended the Universidad de El Salvador which was historically strong academically and involved in social issues/justice. “I felt that journalism was a good combination of psychology and literature, and it truly gave me the opportunity to tell stories,” she explained. After journeying through journalism, Ms. Navarro finished by writing for a literary magazine.

Ms. Navarro ended up choosing a job in teaching Spanish because it allowed her to stay connected to her home country. She told me that she enjoys “working with young people who are motivated to learn Spanish and who are curious about the culture embedded within the language.” It was the idea of helping students with both language skills and appreciation for perspectives that led Ms. Navarro to her final career decision.

At her master’s program at UNO, she was recommended to apply to BT’s open Spanish teacher position. Ms. Navarro has now been here for eight years and has had a very positive experience so far.

Since Ms. Navarro focuses on her priorities, spending time with her family and enjoying life matter most to her. She appreciates the present moment as much as possible and not hurry through it. For “practical and personal goals”, Ms. Navarro desires to move to a warmer place that’s closer to nature.

She had so much valuable advice for current students, but here’s the main parts of her wisdom: “What truly matters most is always trying your best in whatever you do. Life experiences often change our perspectives, and you may end up doing something different from what you originally planned, and that is okay. What will truly take you where you want to be is your work ethic—the habit of showing up, putting in effort, and learning from every experience…Don’t be shy and don’t be afraid of making mistakes, because mistakes are valuable opportunities to learn and grow. Confidence and effort will take you much further than perfection ever will.”