History of the Carlos Rosario School
The School was established more than 40 years ago by Carlos Manuel Rosario . Mr . Rosario believed in education and saw a need to bridge the gap of English language education for the Latino community of Washington , D . C .
Rosario founded PEILA , Program of English Instruction for Latin Americans . Based in Columbia Heights , PEILA addressed the critical problems created by language barriers and the lack of culturally-appropriate information available to the immigrant community .
Carlos Rosario then met Sonia Gutierrez , a professional educator at the time . She became the new director of the institution . As Director , she transformed the small , under-funded ESL program into a comprehensive adult education program .
In 1996 , the School was forced to close due to a financial crisis in the District government that impacted DC Public Schools . Sonia Gutierrez worked from her home basement for two years to earn enough money to reopen the school .
In 1998 , the school reopened under the new name , the Carlos Rosario International Public Charter School , and became the first adult charter school in the nation .
In 2004 , the School moved into its Harvard Street Campus location in northwest D . C .’ s Columbia Heights neighborhood .
In 2013 , the Carlos Rosario School expanded to a second building - the Sonia Gutierrez Campus in Eckington , northeast D . C .
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