Lolita Tizol

Lolita Tizol

"Ponce Honra a su Maestra"
(Ponce Honors its Teacher)"
Born June 19, 1890
Ponce, Puerto Rico
Died April 25, 1933
Ponce, Puerto Rico
Nationality Puerto Rican
Occupation Educator
Salary $50 per month

Lolita Tizol was an early twentieth-century Puerto Rican music educator from Ponce.[1]

Early years

Lolita Tizol Laguardia was born in Ponce, Puerto Rico on June 19, 1890.[2] Her parents were Cosme Tizol and Saturnina Laguardia.[3] She started her elementary education in Ponce and completed it in the United States. When she was 10 years old she started taking music classes with his father who, seeing her musical aptitude, started teaching her to play the violin. She subsequently studied with Domingo Cruz "Cocolia" and Aberrano Colón. She also studied under Brindis de Salas, the Cuban musician, while Salas was staying in Puerto Rico. As her musical abilities were further recognized, Lolita was offered a scholarship to study music in Boston. Her father, however, counseled her that in Puerto Rico music was not given the recognition that it deserved, and sent her to Alabama to study education and prepare herself as a teacher.[4]

Teaching career

Tizol Laguardia graduated with a degree in Education and a specialization in Home Economics. Returning to Puerto Rico five years after leaving to Alabama, Tizol took the necessary Puerto Rico teachers' exam and started teaching in barrio Semil in Juana Diaz. A year later she taught in Coamo and subsequently in Ponce.[5] Tizol spent her life educating children at a time when most people in Ponce, as most of Puerto Rico, did not know how to read and write, and when teachers were paid only $50USD per month, even in the large cities.[6] Under these circumstances, Tizol, overcoming all challenges, gave of herself to help others.

School principal

In Ponce she also became school principal.[7] Tizol Laguardia was the first principal to institute a school lunch program and, later, a breakfast program for undernourished children.[8]

Other activities

Tizol Laguardia was also a member of the Ponce Symphony Orchestra. She also toured the island giving concerts.[9]

Honors

For her dedication and talent, a statue was erected in her memory in a Ponce city park, Tricentennial Park, with a plaque that reads: Ponce Honra a su Maestra (Ponce Honors its Teacher). She died in Ponce on April 25, 1933, at age 42.[10]

Legacy

In Ponce there is a street in the Ponce Historic Zone named after her. In Ponce there is also a full-body statue of Tizol with two pupils. Also in Ponce, she is recognized at the Park for the Illustrious Ponce Citizens.[11]

References

  1. ↑ Ponceños Ilustres. Municipality of Ponce.
  2. ↑ Lolita Tizol Statue Webshots
  3. ↑ Luis Fortuño Janeiro. Album Historico de Ponce (1692-1963). Ponce, Puerto Rico: Imprenta Fortuño. Page 281.
  4. ↑ Luis Fortuño Janeiro. Album Historico de Ponce (1692-1963). Ponce, Puerto Rico: Imprenta Fortuño. Page 281.
  5. ↑ Luis Fortuño Janeiro. Album Historico de Ponce (1692-1963). Ponce, Puerto Rico: Imprenta Fortuño. Page 281.
  6. ↑ For Porto Rican Schools. The New York Times. May 6, 1902.
  7. ↑ Luis Fortuño Janeiro. Album Historico de Ponce (1692-1963). Ponce, Puerto Rico: Imprenta Fortuño. Page 281.
  8. ↑ Luis Fortuño Janeiro. Album Historico de Ponce (1692-1963). Ponce, Puerto Rico: Imprenta Fortuño. Page 281.
  9. ↑ Luis Fortuño Janeiro. Album Historico de Ponce (1692-1963). Ponce, Puerto Rico: Imprenta Fortuño. Page 281.
  10. ↑ Lolita Tizol Statue Webshots
  11. ↑ Education. Travel Ponce. Accessed and retrieved 22 February 2011.

See also

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