On May 14th, a significant meeting took place in which the teachers at the School and the Universidad Cristóbal Colón were recognized on the occasion of Teacher’s Day, through a virtual transmission from the Escuelas Pías room of the Torrente Campus.
The presidium consisted of Dr. and Fr. José Manuel Asún Jordán, rector; Fr. Sergio Fernando Hernández Avilés, Deputy General Vice-Chancellor and General Holder of the Cristóbal Colón School; Master Emma Illescas Navarro, director general of the School and Dr. Daniel Vázquez Cotera, academic general director of the UCC.
The emotional meeting began with an in memoriam, in honor of the teachers who physically departed during the last year and who were remembered with affection and thanks: Ing. José Guadalupe González Zúñiga, Dr. Enrique Rodriguez Méndez, Ing. Irma Ramona García Ortega, Dr. Ernesto de Jesús Hernández Alvarez, Mr. Héctor Sosa Telona, Ing. Agustín Jiménez León and Fr. Francesc Fuster Angel.
The words of welcome were said by Fr. Sergio Fernando Hernández Avilés, who emphasized the thanks to teachers for their daily work so that from preschool to postgraduate school students can develop their intellectual and human capacities to be better people; that know how to transform our world and reality, in tune with the interest of the Cristóbal Colón Center for Studies, with a comprehensive education, based on the philosophy of Saint Joseph Calasanz, and for which one hundred percent of the professional work of all teachers is needed.
Seniority recognitions were then handed over. It is worth mentioning that given its virtual nature, previously the staff who have turned 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40 years working at the CECC received their corresponding plates in their homes, which they showed in a box with great satisfaction when being appointed during the transmission.
Master Araceli González Suárez, from Primary and who turns 40 with us, expressed great satisfaction at being part of the great dream that Saint Joseph Calasanz had many years ago and thanked God for having accompanied her on this great mission with the little ones through faith and culture, which are part of the motto “Piety and Letters”.
Teachers who recently came to retirement were invited to be physically on the broadcast to receive their accolades. They were: Alfredo Zavaleta Rito, José María Urbano Castro Espinosa and Victoria Eugenia Pastor Ramos. It was up to the former to express that one still feels part of the Colón Family, something he found very rewarding when he arrived, by joining a community with a great legacy; with the commitment to continue it and magnify it, making it grow as a professional and as a person.
Another detail shared with guests was the presentation of two videos in which students from School and University appreciated the dedication of their professors and congratulated them on their day.
Finally, Fr. José Manuel Asún Jordán addressed a message focused on the effort and dedication of teachers during these difficult times we have lived during the pandemic:
“You are cooperators of truth; of that which has no more reason than to love and serve to the point of exhaustion, of which it does not change, even if the present sometimes brings us to our knees. How great there is in each of you! None of this could have been done without your tenacity and conviction. They are the embodiment of that passion of our founder Calasanz to humbly teach in everyday life the many ways of living our humanity, of being fully human; to be happy in the midst of difficulty. With you and only with you can we remain Columbus: a part of the Pious Schools that in your actions shows that educating to serve is our truth and our way of life and of existence. Many congratulations!”
Maestro Edmundo Gómez Martínez
