Teacher denied re-entry expected in class today

THOMASTON – Bienvenidos, Ms. Moreno!

Georges Valley High School Spanish teacher Silvia Moreno is expected to be back in the classroom today, more than a week after U.S. officials denied her re-entry after a class trip to Costa Rica. She had, instead, flown to her native country, Colombia.

She has been teaching at the high school for nearly two years.

“We’re thrilled,” said Assistant Principal Ben Vail on Tuesday, noting that Moreno was expected to be back teaching immediately.

On Tuesday, students created a large, decorative “Welcome Home Ms. Moreno” sign that they hung in the main foyer at the high school.

On April 30, Moreno, 34, was denied re-entry in Miami because her visa was expired. Rather than formally be deported and not be allowed to return to the United States for five years, she was given the option to buy her own plane ticket to Colombia to obtain a new visa.

According to Moreno and SAD 50 officials, the Spanish teacher had taken steps beforehand to ensure her visa was in order. She knew her original visa was expired, but she had gotten an extension until August 2003. Three immigration officials had told her that as long as her expired visa was attached to her extension, she would have no problems, she said.

That was not the case, however, when the high school group arrived in Miami last week.

Immigration officials in Miami said an extension may not be substituted for a valid visa.

Normally, it takes two to three weeks to obtain a new visa, according to Moreno.

When U.S. Sen. Susan Collins got wind of the mix-up, she contacted the State Department, which in turn called the U.S. Embassy in Bogota, Colombia, to speed up the process. Apparently, it worked.

“We got word from the State Department [on Monday that it] had approved her new visa,” said a spokeswoman for Collins. “The senator is delighted to have this resolved so quickly. It’s good news.”

But, according to a colleague, Moreno’s return Tuesday did not go smoothly.

Upon her arrival at Miami International Airport, Moreno apparently ran into some turbulence over her documentation that caused her to miss her connecting flight to Boston. Moreno expected to catch a later flight, Georges Valley High School French teacher Mary June Smith said late Tuesday afternoon.

Once in Boston, Moreno was planning to catch a bus to Portland, where her car has been parked since her departure two weeks ago for the class trip.