Macy Goldberg

Spanish teacher Marta Reinaldo points to a map of Spain, as colleague Lee Roby and a student look on.

Friends Upper School Spanish teacher Marta Reinaldo knows firsthand the challenge of adjusting to a new culture. She moved across the Atlantic to start her career: to a new country, in a new language, with new people. 

A native of Vigo, Spain, Reinaldo spent a summer in the US during high school before moving here permanently. Living with a host family in Milwaukee, she experienced the first of many culture shocks. 

“I remember my host mom told me, ‘Let’s go get groceries.’ We were walking to the garage and I was wondering, why is she going to get the car?” Reinaldo says.

Everything in her hometown was walkable. She couldn’t imagine using a car to go grocery shopping.

After that month in Milwaukee, Reinaldo finished high school in Vigo and attended the University of Salamanca in Salamanca, Spain. There she studied linguistics, and learned an impressive six languages:  Spanish, English, French, German, Portuguese, and Galician.

After college, she earned a scholarship to get her master’s degree at the University of West Virginia. Inspired by her previous time in the US, she made the big decision to go.

She started her new life in the US with a trip to New York City with her parents. 

“I had never been to New York before, and I was like: ‘Oh my gosh – it’s like the movies!’ You know, tall buildings, people rushing everywhere, the streets were dirty, rats,” she says. “It was very exciting.” 

Then she headed to West Virginia, ready to take on Morgantown. At the university, Reinaldo was shocked by how easy her early classes were.

“In Salamanca, I remember studying three, four weeks before a test. So when I moved to West Virginia, I was worried because everything was in a different language,” she says.

Her first test changed all that. It asked about basic grammar: “circle the noun in the sentence and underline the definite article,” she says. “I was like, are you serious?”

In addition to getting her MA, Reinaldo also taught college-level Spanish classes – the first step in her teaching career. After graduation, Reinaldo moved to Baltimore to teach at Friends. 

“It was quite a move,” she says. “When I came to Baltimore, it felt a little more like home. In my home city there’s a harbor too, so I was showing all my new friends that it was like home.”

In her new job, Reinaldo found some obligations challenging. It was stressful communicating with students and parents in her second language. This part of the job was nothing like she’d experienced in Spain or West Virginia.

“[Previously] I never had to send communications,” she says. “The biggest struggle was sending emails home, Back to School Nights… the more personal interactions with students and parents.”

But Reinaldo’s colleagues say they never doubted that she was the person for the job. Lee Roby, Friends Upper School Language Department Chair – and now also a friend – was part of the decision to hire Reinaldo in 2021. 

“She has an authenticity that came through in the very first interview,” says Roby. “We just knew that she would be great.”

Reinaldo seemed prepared for the job. Roby says that first impression has held true as she’s gotten to know Reinaldo as a colleague, and seen the skills she brings to the department.

“I like the fact that she’s not a pushover at all,” Roby says. “She’s very young. And so sometimes students like to walk all over young teachers. But she both has that strictness about her, and yet she’s just so relatable. So I think that she’s a great mentor for students.”   

Many students agree. Senior Kylie Ingerman, a former student of Reinaldo’s, says her class was a great mix of fun and learning.

“I took Spanish V with her and it was probably my favorite class I’ve ever taken,” says Kylie. “Not only was it interactive, but I feel like I learned more in this class than any other Spanish class I’ve ever had.”

Senior Charlotte Hassler agrees.

“Ms. Reinaldo might be my favorite teacher I’ve ever had,” she says. “She never makes you feel bad if you don’t understand something. She’s very positive and helpful.”

Reinaldo says that’s her goal, as a teacher.

“More than ‘I learned the present or past tense with her,’ I want them to remember the class as fun and engaging,” she says. “I want them to feel supported ,and like they can come talk to me if they’ve had a bad day.”

Reinaldo’s adjustment to a new culture, and being a native Spanish speaker, give her a perspective that’s uncommon at Friends School. Her relatability and kindness make her a great mentor and highly valued member of the community. The impact she has on her students extends beyond their knowledge of Spanish, and will stay with many.