Ms. MacAlpine realized how useful Spanish could be while working as a Shaw’s supermarket bagger. She recognized how her basic skills were practical when communicating with other Spanish-only speakers. Her childhood hope of becoming a famous singer disappeared and was replaced by her dreams of teaching. Her interests in education evolved when she started helping a fellow classmate learn her penmanship. “I made worksheets with the dotted lines in the shape of letters to help her, and she was so grateful.” Teaching was her way of “spreading the joy of the Spanish language” to new people.

After attending Assumption College, Boston College, and the Universidad de Valencia (in Spain), Ms. MacAlpine ended up in Westborough, not far from her hometown of Ashland.

She has enjoyed every minute of the last twelve years at Westborough High School. “Every day is awesome. Every second is different.”

Ms. MacAlpine describes herself as a hands-off teacher. “I look to put it in the hands of the students.”

Ms. MacAlpine’s personality extends outside of the classroom. She enjoys spending time with her family, especially her ten month old niece, and taking her dance class twice every week. In the future, Ms. MacAlpine hopes to move to a new house located in Mendon, MA (fingers crossed).

Her advice to high school students is, “Try to enjoy it. Don’t wish your time away. I hear kids a lot of times saying ‘ugh, I wish this week were over’ or ‘I wish it were Friday.’ Live every moment and enjoy it because life really changes a lot when you’re an adult. Find what you like. Do what you want to do. Do what makes you happy.”