At just ten years old, sophomore Renato Serrano left the life he knew in El Salvador.
Renato left his dad and his grandma in El Salvador when he moved to Florida in the fifth grade. He flew to America with his two brothers and his mom, who had received a new job opportunity.
When Renato arrived in Florida, he couldn’t speak English. He was put into the ESOL program, but he says he worked to learn English himself. “In Florida, they don’t really teach you anything,” he said.
Although Renato can speak English now, being a native Spanish speaker came with its struggles.
“In middle school, it was hard to make friends because I didn’t really speak the language,” he said. “Same thing at home. I couldn’t do my homework because I didn’t understand.”
Renato moved to Maryland the summer before his freshman year after learning English on his own throughout elementary and middle school.
Upon arriving in Maryland, Renato was still in ESOL. “In my freshman year, they put me in that class, but I wanted to take a test [to get out],” he said, believing he had learned enough English to no longer need the classes. Renato successfully completed the test and has not been in ESOL since.
At Wilde Lake, Renato says he feels for the students who currently struggle with learning English. “In this school, when I see kids who don’t speak English, it reminds me of myself,” he said.
Although Renato identifies with his Salvadorian culture, sometimes he wishes he was born in America so his life would have been “easier.”
But, Renato still feels a connection to his Salvadorian identity. “I say I’m from El Salvador because I was born there. I still have some friends there, and my family is still there,” he said.
