The Spanish School (TSS), an elementary program of the St. Louis Language Immersion Schools (SLLIS), received the 2012 Academic Excellence in Spanish School of the Year Award by the Education Office of the Embassy of Spain.

"Congratulations to The Spanish School staff, students and community on its national recognition as a successful language immersion program," said Missouri Commissioner of Education Chris L. Nicastro. "The benefits of dual language opportunities are endless. Understanding different languages and cultures deeply enhance a student's learning ability and enriches lifelong skills for global performance."

The Spanish School was presented third place in the elementary school category and will receive a $1,500 award.

The Education Office's School of the Year Award acknowledges schools in which students achieve high competency in Spanish language through the use of Content & Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) methodology. The application was open to all charter, public and private schools in the United States who serve elementary, middle or high school students. More than 30 schools nationwide applied for consideration.

"This is a huge win for our community," said SLLIS Founder and President Rhonda Broussard. "Every adult in The Spanish School plays a key role in promoting Spanish language to create more bilingual, global citizens. Our children love speaking Spanish and take great pride in showing the greater community that everyone can be bilingual."

The Spanish School opened in 2009 and currently serves 360 kindergarten through fourth grade students. The school will include fifth grade beginning in the 2013-2014 school year.

St. Louis Language Immersion Schools is a network of public charter schools in St. Louis and includes a Spanish, French and Chinese school. SLLIS' mission is to position all children for success in local and global economies through holistic, intellectually inspiring language immersion programs. Next year, SLLIS will serve more than 900 students. More information can be found at sllis.org.

The Education Office is a technical body of the Diplomatic Mission of Spain to the U.S. and Canada. Its headquarters are located at the Embassy of Spain in Washington, D.C. The Education Office forms part of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport of Spain's foreign offices network spread over five continents and is in charge of implementing Spain's foreign education policies in the U.S. and Canada. Visit mecd.gob.es for more information.