Hilary Almeida grew up with a passion for foreign languages and cultures. She pursued her education at New York University, earning a Bachelor’s degree in Spanish and an Master’s degree in TESOL: Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. She received the Spanish Award for Excellence, was inducted into Sigma Delta Pi, and was granted a government scholarship in bilingual education. At NYU, she also loved studying Portuguese, French, Music, and Dance.
After graduation, Hilary spent years traveling through South America, teaching and training teachers, including six years in Brazil. She returned to New Jersey and directed the English program at a Japanese Day School and then went on to teach World Language and ESL in the public schools. During this time, she had the pleasure of creating original instructional materials and performing with her guitar in many Latino Heritage and Black history programs with the strong belief that music is a powerful educational tool. She has provided students with opportunities to experience linguistic and cultural diversity through programs and intercultural exchanges. In 2016 she was awarded Teachers Who Rock and in 2019, she was selected as one of the Governor’s Teacher of the Year candidates from the district of Teaneck, New Jersey.
She is currently enjoying her eleventh year as a member of Fairleigh Dickinson University’s adjunct faculty. She began teaching in a Master’s program in the School of Education. In 2017 and 2018, she was selected and sent to China to give teacher workshops. In 2019 she joined the School of Global Learning in the Puerta Al Futuro program for new Americans from Latin America. In 2023, she was invited into the School of Psychology Department as an Empathy Training Program trainer for faculty, staff, and students.
During her 30-year career she has provided professional development to educators at the district, county and state levels. She has also served as chair for the NJTESOL-NABE Bergen – Passaic chapter and on the TESOL advisory board at Seton Hall University.
Mrs. Almeida lives with her husband, Orlandino, of 40 years in Teaneck. In her free time, she enjoys dancing, improv theater, singing with her guitar, and traveling. She is a fluent speaker of Spanish, Portuguese, and English and has visited countries in Europe, Africa, Asia, and North and South America.