Last week our Spanish department hosted two representatives from Kiva: Jessica Hansen, Global Engagement and Education Manager and Catherine Cocke, Online Marketing & Social Media Manager. Kiva is a San Francisco-based nonprofit organization with a global reach.  Kiva’s mission is to connect individual lenders with people around the world who need micro loans to improve their lives through small businesses, education, green energy, and a number of other projects.

Kiva relies on volunteer translators to communicate borrowers’ needs. Many seeking loans are from Spanish-speaking countries. Our 7th grade students spent time in Spanish class learning about Kiva and using language skills to translate sample loan profiles from Spanish into English. This use of the Spanish language is powerful and allows students to apply their understanding of vocabulary to real life situations.

Ms. Hansen and Ms. Cocke shared stories about how their personal and professional journeys led them to their work at Kiva. Their enthusiasm for Kiva was infectious as our Hamlin girls engaged in the discussion with thoughtful questions. The event culminated with the students receiving codes in order to lend $25 each to a borrower of their choice.

This is the second year the Spanish department has carried out this lesson and visit, and we hope to continue this partnership for years to come.

You can learn more at https://www.kiva.org/

Special thanks to faculty member Alison Trujillo for providing the content for this post.