Madison Reporter

When first-grade teacher Karina Araujo Sierra refers to her colleagues at Nuestro Mundo Community School as family, she speaks both literally and figuratively. Among her coworkers is her father, Jorge Araujo, who has served as a custodian in the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD) for 32 years. For both, the Dual Language Immersion (DLI) school represents their family values, history, and impact.

Karina, now in her third year of teaching, developed her bond with Nuestro Mundo long before her professional tenure. From a young age, she was influenced by stories of her grandparents' educational endeavors in Colombia and her father's commitment to Madison schools.

Karina remarked, “I’ve always been surrounded by this community. My grandparents were educators, my mom and dad both work in the district, and now I really enjoy teaching.”

Her mother, Fabiola Araujo, is a lead custodian at O’Keeffe Middle School; at one time, both Fabiola and Jorge worked together at Sherman Middle School. Despite almost two decades at Nuestro Mundo, Jorge chose to remain at the school, appreciating its dual language setting and the opportunity to support its community.

Jorge stated, “Being bilingual myself, I thought working here would let me do something extra with the Spanish language. The principal, the staff, the kids, they really take care of the school, and I wouldn’t want to miss this. And then knowing that my daughter was going to be working for Nuestro Mundo, it was another reason for me to stay and see her grow within the district.”

For Karina, Jorge’s influence is a source of stability and motivation. She shared, “Since he's been working for so many years and has so much knowledge, he always has great ideas for everything from how I could set up my room to learning activities for my students.”

From her first day, Karina found substantial support from the Nuestro Mundo staff. She noted, “Every single person has been so supportive. I've learned a lot, and I'm continuing to learn from my colleagues who are so open and caring. Any positive impact that I can make on these kids is more than enough. I just love my job.”

Jorge's presence has impacted generations. He has encountered former students of Nuestro Mundo and now their children. Current students affectionately greet him as Maestro Jorge.

Reflecting on his role, Jorge said, “I always say, my job is not about pushing a broom. Of course, I keep the building working and safe, but it's more than that. I think you have to plant the seed of connection somewhere in the line.”