Czech School in MiamiUpdated
Czech School in Miami is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that teaches Czech to children through free online Story Time and classes for ages 4–7, online on Sundays and in person on Saturdays in Miami.
“I started Czech School in Miami for my own daughter, Jasmine. I wanted her to be able to talk to her grandparents in Czech, to really know them, and there was nowhere for little kids to learn and play in Czech here. So we built one. Watching it grow into this community, and seeing all our kids together every Saturday, is more than I ever hoped for.”
Co-founder
Jitka is from Prague and has a legal background. As the Honorary Consul of the Czech Republic in Miami, she supports the Czech community here, and she's passionate about helping families stay connected to their roots. She started the school so her own daughter could grow up speaking Czech, and she leads its nonprofit operations.
Co-founder and board member
Jana is from Písek. In New York she worked in diplomacy and education, with the Czech Consulate General and the Czech School in New York, and she continues that work in Miami through Czech School in Miami. She is a mother of three bilingual daughters and a parent at the school.
Her older daughters grew up in New York, where the Czech community gave them friendships, confidence and a strong connection to their heritage. After moving to Florida, she wanted to share that same sense of belonging with other families.
Head teacher
Lenka is a qualified primary teacher. She studied primary school teaching, with a focus on art education, at the Faculty of Education of Jan Evangelista Purkyně University.
She has lived in the USA since 1999. She taught at a private school in Manhattan, and for 10 years at the Czech-Slovak language center in Astoria, where she taught Czech language, history and culture to children from preschool to seventh grade, in person and online.
In Florida she teaches primary school at a private school, and she leads the classes at Czech School in Miami.