¡Hola! I would like to introduce myself to everyone and share this AMAZING experience with all of you as we venture out to Estelí, Nicaragua. My name is Ricardo Salgado and I will be one of your GG Leaders along with Zully Valdez. I know that it is a hectic time since it’s the end of the school year, but in the meantime I want to take this opportunity to share a little about myself.

I’m from the Bay, born in Palo Alto, but raised in San Jose.  I graduated from Santa Clara University not once but twice:  I have two Bachelor’s degrees in Mathematics & Spanish, and received my Master’s in Interdisciplinary Education.  I am finishing my 11th year teaching, during that time I have taught 5 years at the middle school level and the last 6 years at the high school level.  For 8 of my ten years I taught mathematics; everything from Algebra 1 to Math Analysis, and the last 3 years I have taught Spanish Heritage, AP Spanish Lang & AP Spanish Literature.

I teach at Andrew P. Hill High School, which is located in southeast San Jose, with a population of roughly 2300 students.  It’s where I wear my hats as Boys Athletic Director and Link Crew leader!  Believe it or not, the change from math to Spanish, although it was difficult, has been so much fun.  I’ve been able to incorporate global issues, history, geography and culture into my curriculum, which has been awesome.

This is my fifth time leading a trip with Global Glimpse. My first trip with Global Glimpse was to León, Nicaragua, which was HOT, but so much fun and was a great learning experience for the students and myself.  The last three years, I have been a leader of a delegation to the Dominican Republic. I’ve been to San Juan de la Managua, Bonao and San Cristobal.  Global Glimpse must be doing something right, since this is my 5th delegation and I honestly can’t wait to embark this journey with all of you. I’ve also had the opportunity to travel in Spain with 8 students from Andrew Hill High School, last year and had the opportunity to learn about the culture and history of that country.

In addition to travel, I love the outdoors: playing soccer, running (three half-marathons under my belt and am completed the infinity gauntlet challenge (19.1 miles last November).  I love animals, music, FOOD, spending quality time with family and friends. I’m a HUGE sports fan soccer, SJ Quakes, Barcelona, baseball, San Francisco Giants, and basketball Golden State.

I look forward to speaking with you all soon. In the meantime, if you have any pre trip questions, please feel free to contact me.

Thank you for your Courage, Commitment and Compassion!

Ricardo