Welcome to Escuelita at DC Bilingual!

An immersive professional learning experience for schools ready to reimagine what’s possible.

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At DC Bilingual, we believe in the power of sharing knowledge to strengthen education for all students.

Over the years, hundreds of educators and school leaders have visited our campus to learn from our holistic, bilingual approach—where academic excellence is deeply connected to language, culture, and the whole child’s development. Just as we were supported on our journey to success, we feel a profound responsibility to help other schools grow and thrive.

Escuelita is our next step in fulfilling that commitment.

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Bienvenidos!

Introducing Escuelita

Escuelita is a new initiative—designed and led by DC Bilingual CEO Daniela Anello and Senior Advisor Alina Thouyaret (former principal at DC Bilingual)—to share our school's transformative approach to professional development.

Escuelita offers immersive, hands-on experiences for school teams to reflect, align, and plan together, with the guidance of educators who’ve led successful school transformation.

What to Expect at Escuelita

Every Escuelita experience invites school teams into DC Bilingual’s dynamic learning environment to see the systems and structures that support joyful, rigorous, and inclusive dual language education.

During your visit, you will:

✅ Observe a high-performing dual language school in action
✅ Engage in deep collaboration and strategy-sharing with peers
✅ Walk away with practical tools, fresh insights, and a working plan tailored to your own school context

Escuelita is more than a professional development program—it’s a movement to uplift schools, educators, and the students they serve. We’re proud to share what we’ve learned and honored to learn from others along the way.

Upcoming Sessions

Applications for the fall sessions are now open!

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Interested?

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The total cost of participation is $5,000 per team for a 3-day experience. We are actively working with funders to secure support so we can offer the experience at no cost or a reduced rate to select school teams.

Space is limited and spots are filling up fast!

Complete interest form

What inspired us?

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As we invested more intentionally in shared learning experiences and cross-school collaboration, we were excited for the opportunity in 2021 to partner with the Community Academies of New Orleans (CANO) and support them with the transformation of Esperanza Academy into a 50/50 Spanish immersion school.

Over three years, we coached leaders and teachers, offered targeted training, and helped shape systems to support their dual language vision. The result? A thriving, unique school—the only one of its kind in the region—with overwhelmingly positive feedback from staff and leadership. This experience confirmed two key insights:
  1. There is a growing demand for the kind of programming and support DC Bilingual can offer.
  2. We have the tools and expertise to provide transformative professional development that improves classrooms and outcomes.

Fast forward to April 2025, we officially launched Escuelita with a powerful three-day pilot hosted on our campus. Educators from five DC schools—representing public charters and DCPS—joined us to explore strategies for building strong teacher teams that drive student success.

Participants observed live classrooms, engaged in structured collaboration, and walked away with actionable strategies, helpful tools, and a supportive peer network to sustain their work.

The Escuelita pilot, funded by Education Forward DC, brought together educators, administrators, and leadership in a rare and meaningful cross-sector effort. Together, we’re building something bigger than training—we’re building a movement to strengthen schools through shared learning and community.

    DC Bilingual Honored as 2024 National Blue Ribbon School

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    DC Bilingual was recognized as a 2024 National Blue Ribbon School by the US Department of Education, a prestigious award recognizing exemplary schools that are in the top 15% of all public schools on state assessments in reading & math and have the highest high school graduation rates.