Bridge Selected by Partners of the Americas to Provide English Teachers to Colombia

Bridge helps support Colombia’s Servicio Nacional de Aprendizaje (SENA) in educating fully bilingual citizens through its “Teach English Colombia” (TEC) program.

To support the goal of the Colombian government in educating fully bilingual citizens, Bridge® will recruit English teachers to travel to Colombia beginning June 8, 2014. The Teach English Colombia program, funded by the Servicio Nacional de Aprendizaje (SENA), a Colombian Government agency, operates with the international coordination of Partners of the Americas and in Colombia by Heart for Change, a Colombian non-profit organization.  

“The opportunity to provide SENA with volunteer English teachers is a perfect example of how we, at Bridge, fulfill our mission: to transform lives and organizations by delivering excellence in language and education abroad. We are honored to have been chosen by Partners of the Americas, and SENA, to help with this initiative and to further foster effective communication and understanding across cultures worldwide, which is our main purpose at Bridge,” said Matthew Clark, Director of BridgeTEFL®.

“Partners of the Americas is proud of our rich relationship with SENA and is honored to work with them to provide the citizens of Colombia with a comprehensive, free, vocational education. We are excited to partner with Bridge to help fulfill our role in supplying SENA with the best volunteer English teachers available,” said Steve Vetter, Partners’ President and CEO.

With more than 25 years of experience in the language and education fields, Bridge offers a full spectrum of language-related products and services, including TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) courses. Bridge’s TEFL division is the largest provider of TEFL courses in the United States and as such is uniquely qualified to recruit teachers that meet the standards of the SENA program.

Native English speakers are now welcome to apply to teaching opportunities in the Colombian cities of Manizales, Bogotá, Cartagena, Medellín and Barranquilla. Participants will be assigned, in advance, to a specified SENA center with three other volunteers and will be teaching students between the ages of 18-23 who have already had six months of English instruction. The program includes a three week, in-depth orientation and training, and the six-month teaching contract comes with housing and a monthly stipend.

Both TEFL certified and non-TEFL certified applicants are encouraged to apply. For those who are not already TEFL certified, Bridge will provide a TEFL certification, medical insurance, and lifetime English teaching job placement assistance. Live virtual Spanish classes will be provided pre-departure to help facilitate participants’ communication with students and community members during their time in Colombia.