Being a teacher is a profession that demands heartfelt dedication. With dedication and unconditional love, educators transform challenges, creating an environment where every child feels valued and capable of shining.

Las Tunas, Cuba.– In this universe of tenderness lives Nérida Noguera Valdés, a teacher who has dedicated fifty years to education, forty-four of them in special education.

Although her first steps were in primary education, she soon found her true calling with children with different educational needs. It's a field that requires great passion, empathy, and creativity, where diversity is an invaluable asset, becoming the guide for her students.

For 39 years, she worked at the Turcios Lima special school before joining the “Jorge Aleaga Peña” school.
“I've always loved being a teacher. The only thing I know how to do, and that I'm good at, is teaching.”

Although her family didn't approve of her studying to be a teacher, she found a way to fulfill her dream. "What I really wanted was to be a teacher or a pediatrician, something that had to do with children," she recalls.

"Back then, parents had to sign a permission slip for their children to study. I asked an aunt to sign the letter, and that's how I started, without my mother's or grandmother's consent." Thus began a life dedicated to teaching.

"Since 1976, I've never left education. I retired in 2011, but I only stopped working for a month. Now I'm celebrating 15 years back in the profession."

Currently, Nérida works with a group of 14 children with complex educational needs, including children with autism, Down syndrome, and epilepsy. "I already have three who can write on their own, whereas before I had to hold their hands so they could do it. The progress has been remarkable," she says proudly. Sometimes she is also assigned students from other classrooms, increasing her responsibility and dedication.

"The students' progress is influenced by the concern and support of their parents." Although she acknowledges that there are difficult days, she says she feels good at the school, surrounded by these children who give her back her energy and the certainty that she chose the right path. Half a century later, her vocation remains intact: to teach, to support, and to open doors for those who need it most.

Working alongside her at the same school is Anet Ayala Zayas, an art instructor and member of the José Martí Art Instructors Brigade in Las Tunas. With 19 years of experience in special education, nine of which she has spent at this school, Anet has found in culture a bridge to reach the hearts of the children.

"I started working with children with special needs here, and you fall in love with them. You grow as a person because, in addition to their sensitivity, their way of being, they are extraordinary people with enormous talent for art," she says with emotion. Her work focuses on dance, but goes far beyond technique. She has learned to recognize the needs and potential of each child, and through various cultural activities, she helps them express themselves, enjoy themselves, and develop.

“They enjoy what they do, they have fun, and in this way, you realize that what you are doing is truly worthwhile, and the result is always wonderful,” she affirms. For her, special education is a space for human growth where each day is as important as what is taught.

At the Jorge Aleaga Peña School, the stories of Nérida and Anet intertwine with the same purpose: to accompany children with special educational needs with love, dedication, and sensitivity. One through formal education, the other through art, both have transformed their vocation into a way of life. Their journeys are a testament to how special education transforms those who have the privilege of guiding them.