Spanish

Ximena Sierra was born in Cali, Colombia. She received her Master’s Degree in Electrical Engineering from the State University of Campinas, Brazil in 1996. After working in the engineering field in California for some years, she visited a kindergarten at the San Francisco Waldorf School and was inspired to become a teacher. 

After finishing Waldorf Teacher Training at Rudolf Steiner College in 2005, she ran her own Waldorf-inspired early childhood program for two years. She also volunteered as the Arts and Crafts Coordinator for “Mensageiros da Cultura,” a cultural program for Brazilian children living in the Bay Area. In 2009, she joined the Santa Cruz Waldorf School faculty and now teaches Spanish to all eight grades. Her daughter graduated from SCWS in 2018 and is now attending Cornell University.

Immigrating to the United States gave Ximena a unique understanding of the importance of learning a new language and connecting to the cultural aspects of other countries. Her love of working with languages led her to be a founding member of the Waldorf Spanish Teachers Association, which works to support the success of new Spanish teachers and their programs. 

Hasta pronto!