About
Our Story
A neighborhood school built by families and educators — where two languages, two cultures, and a community that feels like extended family shape every school day.
Amistad was founded in 2011 by a small group of Seattle families and educators who dreamed of a neighborhood school where children could grow up fully bilingual — surrounded by two languages, two cultures, and a community that felt like extended family.
They were not building a program. They were building a place. A place where bilingualism was not a subject to be studied but a way of living, connecting, and belonging. Where Spanish and English existed together in the same hallway, the same classroom, the same lunch table — naturally and without apology.
From that first classroom, Amistad has grown into a PK through 8th grade program that still puts family and language at the center of every school day.
What we believe
Bilingualism is more than a skill. It is a way of connecting. A way of honoring family and community. A way of preparing young people to lead in a global world.
That conviction has not changed since the day Amistad opened. It shapes every hiring decision, every curriculum choice, every community event, and every conversation between a teacher and a child. Language is not what we teach. It is how we see the world.
Where we are today
Today Seattle Amistad School is an independent Spanish and English Two-Way Dual Language Immersion school serving children from 12 months through 8th grade in Seattle.
We educate students across five program stages. Little Learners, from 12 months through Pre-K, begins in full Spanish immersion — language-rich, play-based, and deeply connected to family. Foundations, our Kindergarten year, welcomes children with any language background into a full immersion classroom. Bright Minds, 1st through 3rd grade, is where children learn to read in Spanish first and carry that literacy into English. Bridge Years, 4th and 5th grade, deepens biliteracy toward a balanced 50/50 model. Middle School, 6th through 8th grade, brings it all together — academic rigor, leadership, biliteracy credentialing, and a 100% National Seal of Biliteracy success rate for every graduate.
Our graduates move on to public, private, and bilingual high schools across the region. They leave biliterate, confident, and ready for whatever comes next.
Where we are going
We continue to grow with our families — deepening our middle school, expanding before- and after-school enrichment, and strengthening the partnerships that make Amistad a true neighborhood school.
We are not finished building. But we have never lost sight of what we are building toward: a community where every child is known, every family belongs, and every graduate carries two languages into a world that needs both.
“A neighborhood school where children could grow up fully bilingual — surrounded by two languages, two cultures, and a community that felt like extended family.”
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