What Is the Amity Program?

Are you aware that our PTA has been sponsoring native Spanish-speaking interns to come and assist our teachers and kids each year? Puesta Del Sol has been working with an organization called The Amity Institute for over 10 years. The Amity Institute is based out of San Diego, CA and is a nonprofit organization dedicated to building international friendships and cultural understanding through teaching exchange. Each year our interns become a very important part of our school community. For 14-20 weeks, families from our school community open their home to host one of the interns. The interns are between the ages of 20-30 and have a passion for working with children. While being hosted, the interns have a great opportunity to learn about the US, its culture, and the diversity of people that make up our society.  At the same time, your family has an opportunity to learn about the intern's country and culture, and your kids have a great opportunity to practice their Spanish. If you would like to learn more about the Amity Institute and its mission, please check out their website at www.amity.org.

Meet the 2022-23 Amity Interns

	Celia Merino Calle ¡Hola! My name is Celia Merino Calle and I’m from Spain. I’m 24 years old and I have just finished my English Studies bachelor degree in Valladolid. I’ve worked with kids during my years of student, so it’s time to face this new opportunity to share my language and culture to all of you! I’m a traveler person who loves to learn something new from all the places I’ve been. I’m sure this experience is going to be amazing and we’re all going to have a great year! ¡Nos vemos pronto!
	Erick Medrano Hey! I'm Erick Medrano from El Salvador. I'm 26 years old. I enjoy participating in recreational activities and playing soccer. I like to be part of the teaching process as I also learn along the way. I am a person who is open to any possibility of trying something new in my life and thus having new experiences that make a difference. I know I'm about to live a great experience and meet people that will be part of my life somehow. I'm looking forward to meeting you!
	Erika Alcira Rivas Portillo Hello! My name is Erika Alcira Rivas Portillo. I am 27 years-old, I am 170 cm tall, and my favorite color is green. I am from San Vicente, El Salvador. I come from a city where people love music since the most important music bands of the country were born over here. Maybe it is the main reason because I love dancing and listening to music whenever I can. I also love watching movies, cooking, and going out with my friends and family. Recently, I finished my bachelor of education in the English language. It has allowed me to work with kids and young ages. A curious fact about me is that I am a coffee and animal lover. Espero que esta nueva aventura sea increíble para todos, ¡los veo pronto! Erika Rivas
	Danilo Gasca Silva Hello everyone! My name is Danilo Gasca Silva, I’m 21 years old, and I’m from Colombia. Currently, I am a student of foreign languages at the University of Tolima. Furthermore, I’m a folk dancer and a traditional music singer (not a famous one) in some groups at my university. What I’m most passionate about in life is being able to share with children, make them laugh, play with them, and see their growth with all the opportunities and benefits presented to them through education. I love reading (I’m a big fan of Harry Potter stories), traveling, cooking, studying medicine and eating sweets because I’m a very gluttonous guy, especially with chocolate. I hope that we can work together and learn many new things that allow us to grow as human beings. For my part, I can assure you that I’m completely willing to learn from you in the best possible way and I hope that you can have a great example and learn through my work. ¡Nos vemos muy pronto, no puedo esperar para conocerlos!

Host Families Needed for 2023-2024 School Year

The Amity Program offers interns a unique cultural and teaching experience at Puesta. We have four amazing interns this year who are serving in various classrooms.

We are looking for host families for the 2023-2024 school year. Hosting can be 3-6-9 month experience. If you are interested in learning about the program or hosting or connecting to a current host family, please contact [email protected] 

Host Family Application

FAQs for Potential Host Families

Host Family Testimonials

"Hosting an amity is a wonderful and life-changing experience. Although opening up your family to a new member can sometimes be hard, the results are growth, new friendships and a clearer perspective on the world for both kids and adults. After hosting three amities interns I can say the experience has brought our family closer, taught us to be flexible and created lasting friendships that we maintain today. Our three children have embraced Spanish culture, food and really moved to becoming not only biliterate but bicultural in part because of this program. If you've never hosted, I encourage you to consider stepping up for the upcoming year and embrace an opportunity to give back to the Spanish Immersion program as well as help young adult gain skills and opportunities to improve their future. You won't regret it."

--Broussard Family

"Our experience as an Amity host family was nothing short of wonderful! We welcomed an intern from Spain and it gave us an incredible opportunity to learn about the country, understand the culture norms and build a nice relationship with someone that will continue on for years to come. We had a lot of fun introducing new foods and first time experiences with our intern, and it brought so much joy to our family. Our daughter was most excited about riding the bus and practicing her Spanish everyday with our intern. It was a great bonding moment for them. Another reason why we hosted was because we knew the Amity program positively impacts Puesta teachers in getting the help they need in their classrooms. I strongly encourage families who have an extra room at home to consider hosting an intern because the experience everyone gets out of it is invaluable and the impact it has on our children is priceless!"

--Terlaje Family

"We have had an amazing experience hosting several interns in the past. This year, we hosted Danilo very briefly at the start of the year and we are hosting Celia winter term. Highlights from our time together include camping, watching Newsies musical, playing the game Telestrations, and trying different ethnic cuisines. Together, our children practice speaking Spanish at home through daily conversations with the interns and also by spending time writing stories and doing art and crafts together. This is a wonderful opportunity to welcome interns and learn about different cultures and make friends from around the world."

--Cho Family