Four Greensburg seniors making difference for elementary kids

(GREENSBURG, Ind.) – Four Greensburg Community High School seniors are going above-and-beyond to help elementary students. 

Alejandra Razo, Astrid Guzman, Gisel Ortiz and Noemy Ramirez are all bilingual in both Spanish and English. 

Alejandra, Gisel and Astrid are National Honor Society members and came up with a unique idea for their service hours: To tutor both Spanish-speaking and traditional English-speaking students during their free time. 

They invited Gisel and Noemy to be part of the program and they have tutored St. Mary’s Catholic School students since last year.  

“When we first came around the students barely spoke English and now all they want to do is speak English,” Razo said. 

The program has also shown the high schoolers that they are on the right path when considering their careers. 

Three of the four, Astrid, Gisel and Noemy, are each planning to enter the healthcare field. 

Working with the little kids has shown them that their true healthcare passions are helping adolescents. 

“From the first time I’ve been with the kids, I have noticed they make a fun experience out of different lessons and projects and I just really enjoy it,” Gisel said. 

They know how the young Spanish-speakers feel as the four girls have had to learn English while being students themselves. 

It’s a different experience than other classmates have but they each feel Greensburg has fully embraced them.  

“Everybody is kind and helpful. From the students to the assistant principals, even the ladies in the front office, have made it a great experience and I don’t have any bad memories from high school,” Razo said. 

Noemy Ramirez was nervous when she first got to high school. She had attended Greensburg Junior High, moved to Mexico, and then returned to Decatur County. 

“Coming into high school as a Spanish-speaking person I thought everyone was going to be mean. But, as soon as I got involved in different activities I started meeting people and making new connections,” Ramirez said. 

“It has been a really good experience and that is not what I expected,” she added. 

The students were given the opportunity to tutor at St. Mary’s Catholic School through the connections made in the Early Childhood Education Pathway.