Francesca McAuliffe Replaces Dr. Ernest Olivieri as World Language AP

Over the summer, Francesca McAuliffe replaced Dr. Ernest Oliveri as Stuyvesant’s Assistant Principal of the World Language Department. McAuliffe is joining the Stuyvesant staff after 14 years of teaching Spanish and Italian at New Dorp High School in Staten Island.

McAuliffe devotes her free time to homeschooling, Regents tutoring, and supplemental teaching at the Young Adult Borough Center. In addition to teaching world languages at the high school level, she has worked at the college level as an adjunct professor, teaching Spanish to our city’s first responders. She’s also a successful student athlete and former varsity soccer coach.

Principal Eric Contreras was impressed by McAuliffe’s experience as a veteran language educator and leader, as well as her ability to work well with technology in an effective way to improve the learning experience for students. He trusts that McAuliffe will be able to bring these skills to Stuyvesant’s foreign language program. “Because we don’t live in the countries that we’re learning the languages of, working effectively with digital educational tools can create some of those spaces,” he said.

McAuliffe was inspired to become a teacher by one of her high school teachers, whom she described as “phenomenal, energetic, and really exciting.” McAuliffe hopes to bring this same enthusiasm to Stuyvesant. One way she plans to do this is by potentially starting a foreign exchange program, which her previous school featured. “I think it would be great to incorporate some more culture and authentic conversation opportunities within and outside the classroom,” she said.

She also has plans to make small changes to the way Stuyvesant approaches foreign language education. According to McAuliffe, the best way to effectively learn a foreign language is through immersion. “I think foreign language has to be taught holistically. It is important that students are reading, writing, speaking, and listening, as well as making cultural connections within each class so I’d like to see that happen,” she said. She is also a strong advocate for teaching through authentic documents. “I’d like to see authentic resources used frequently, if they aren’t already, such as advertisements and newspaper articles,” she said. Ultimately, she wants students to feel confident with the language that they are learning.

McAuliffe also intends to maintain a number of events Dr. Olivieri put into place during his time as the Interim AP of the World Language Department, which includes the international food and film festivals, to name a few.

Contreras appreciates McAuliffe’s understanding of the concept of learning a language beyond just the book. “I think that you need a balance of both; you need the book to read the language, but the reality is that the utility of language is only achieved through contextual meaning and real life application,” he said. He believes that the change in the World Language AP will enhance the experiences of the student body.

“It’s all about expanding things out and creating more opportunities that will enhance your thinking,” he said. “I’m hopeful and optimistic that such things will happen and that [McAuliffe] will be able to bring those opportunities to all the languages here at Stuyvesant going forward.”