Jose Oleaga works alongside student in Spanish Club at SC (Arteaga/LION).

Bilingual classes at LT are not large in number, but their purpose is to provide proper academic support to bilingual students with their ability to speak two languages. Specifically, new to LT this year, one teacher brings more to the table. 

The new Spanish club advisor and bilingual teacher Jose Oleaga was born in Madrid. His father hailed from Bilbao, in the Basque Country, while his mother came from Castellón, a coastal city near Valencia. 

“Growing up, my love for languages drove me to apply for a scholarship to study college in Normandy, France, despite my limited French-speaking abilities,” Oleaga said.

Oleaga was awarded the scholarship and his journey led him across 20 European countries. He volunteered to teach in Ethiopia, Burundi, and Cambodia for years. 

“In pursuit of a more enduring commitment, I dedicated a year to teaching Spanish in Martinique,” Oleaga said. “Fueled by my passion for travel, I found myself in Pakistan, where I dedicated a year to working at a school nestled in the Himalayas.” 

He eventually returned to Spain, and began working at a high school in Madrid while completing his PhD dissertation, he said. A teacher from Spain introduced him to the possibility of embarking on an exchange program and becoming a bilingual teacher at Chicago Public Schools. He made the move to Chicago in 2015. Oleaga then met his wife, and his plan to go back to Spain changed.

They decided to build their life together in LaGrange, a place they now proudly call home. Oleaga now works at LT as a bilingual teacher who assists bilingual emergent students. He is also actively involved in the Spanish Club as the new club advisor.

“My goal at LT is to be a tireless advocate for my students. I am wholeheartedly dedicated to helping my emerging bilingual students to succeed, not just academically but, more importantly, personally,” Oleaga said. “I have a profound passion for giving a voice to those whose voices are often unheard. I’ve always believed that education is the most potent means to break the cycle of poverty and bring about societal change.”

In the bilingual classes, teachers translate documents, tests, and quizzes in Spanish, Oleaga said. The goal is to not only work with both languages, but to truly learn the content. Additionally, Zuleyma Gonzalez, Patrice Cocco, and Jaime Morote work as bilingual teachers in a co-teaching setting with other various content areas such as history, drivers education, physics, and more.

“Señor Oleaga’s knowledge about language acquisition enriches all student learners regardless of their home language,”Assistant division chair of the Math/Science department and bilingual co-teacher Annette Orrico said. “Co-teaching allows us to reach the needs of more students as they learn biology in two languages.” 

As for the Spanish club, the plan is to focus more on complementing the Spanish classes, Oleaga said. If people want to learn more about how Spainards speak on a day to day basis, or learn about other hispanic traditions and phrases, they should come to Spanish club. 

“From a student perspective, having someone like Mr. Oleaga who has so much experience is really amazing,” Spanish Club president Gianna Dorgan’25 said. “He has so much culture to share and teach us. As someone who doesn’t have access to that side of my heritage, it means a lot having someone be able to expose that to me.”

Moving forward, Oleaga hopes to coach soccer at LT next year, combining his passion for sports with his role as an educator.