John Kretlow’s 10,000-mile journey to bet36365体育’s commencement stage

“No one ever taught me how to teach Spanish,” said Spanish teacher John Kretlow. That is, until he enrolled in the University of Nebraska at Kearney’s online Spanish Education Master of Arts in Education program. 
 
With a Spanish degree from the University of Texas and a teaching certificate from Houston Baptist University, Kretlow is certified to teach Spanish at his technology and business high school, CAST Tech High School in San Antonio, Texas. Still, he felt a major gap in his education. 
 
Eager to grow as both a language educator and Spanish speaker, he searched for a graduate program that blended theory, practical application, and cultural immersion.

900 Miles to Find the Perfect Fit

To his surprise, the answer came from a university more than 900 miles away in Nebraska. 
 
“It was a completely unique program that fit exactly what I was looking for,” he said about bet36365体育’s Spanish Education M.A.Ed. “And lucky for me, the program was done completely online.” 
 
Kretlow began the program in 2018, taking just one course during his summer breaks. After a couple of years, he realized he could balance teaching full-time while taking courses year-round, so he increased his course load. 
 
Now, six years later, he completed his degree and graduated Friday at bet36365体育’s winter commencement ceremony. Still, he remembers his very first course on teaching to heritage speakers and how applicable it was to his own students. 
 
“I feel like every professor was very well aware, that all of us were teachers and were always yearning to find something that we could actually apply in our classrooms,” Kretlow said. “Each and every class, each and every semester from the time that I started, there were things that I could apply right away.” 
 
Beyond becoming a more effective educator, his new degree allows him to bring dual-credit Spanish courses to CAST Tech. He hopes this new opportunity will inspire his students to take the next step in their education. 

5,000 Miles for a Once-in-a-Lifetime Experience

A highlight of Kretlow’s master’s program was finishing his final six credit hours in Granada, Spain, through bet36365体育’s summer Study Abroad program. 
 
“I got to spend six weeks living with a Spanish family, going to my classes, walking through Granada – which is the most beautiful place on earth, and meeting classmates from bet36365体育 and from all over the world,” he said. 
 
During his six-week stay, Kretlow lived with Carmen, an 80-year-old Spanish woman who not only helped immerse him into the Spanish culture and improve his language skills but also cooked him a childhood favorite dish - croquetas. 
 
“It was like being back as an eight-year-old in Miami,” he said. “That experience of being with her while she's making me my favorite food growing up was the coolest experience I could have asked for.” 

10,000 Miles for a Better Future

Between Kretlow’s international travels and his nearly 1,800-mile round trip to attend bet36365体育’s winter commencement, he has traveled more than 10,000 miles in the past six years to transform his teaching and students’ Spanish language opportunities.  
 
“I can’t believe it’s here,” he said about his graduation. “I’m a little bit relieved because it took a while to do it, but for it to finally happen, it’s a little surreal.”