Mayte and the Bogeyman / Mayte y el Cuco

The first child of the family, ADALIZA ACOSTA RODRIGUEZ was born in Río Piedras, Puerto Rico in 1958. While her mother worked outside of the home, Ada spent her days with her great grandmother, Doña Mela. It was in her home that Ada experienced the characters that inspired her story Mayte y el Cuco.

Ada attended the Colegio de La Merced for the first three years of her career as a child. She was later transferred to Colegio Vedruna, where she received her high school diploma. Ada wrote her first story, guided by her mother, Aida, when she was in the third grade. The main character was a cat, and the story was voted Best Composition by her clandestinely circulated from student to student.

Ada’s father, Fernando, had the dream that his children would study in the United States. Ada became the family’s pioneer when, in the fall of 1976, she traveled to Waukesha, Wisconsin to attend Carroll College. For the first time in her life she experienced temperatures under 75 degrees and snow. Much learning and maturing occurred during those four years. She majored in Elementary and Art Education, and minored in Spanish.

Ada returned to Puerto Rico after graduation and worked as an English teacher. She never forgot the Hispanic population in Wisconsin and always felt her career would be more meaningful if she served such a community. Her prayers were answered one Sunday morning when she read that the Milwaukee Public Schools was recruiting teachers in Puerto Rico. A few weeks later she returned to the snow.

Ada became a bilingual education teacher in the city of Milwaukee in 1981. She firmly believed in the development of both, the home and the English languages, in the schools, as was the practice in the Milwaukee Public Schools. She had the opportunity to teach most grade levels, including the Gifted and Talented, and Spanish as Second Language learners.

Ada joined the Master’s program in the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. She majored in Curriculum and Instruction, concentrating on Bilingual Education. She graduated magna cum laude with a Master of Science in 1987.

Soon after graduation Ada had the opportunity to travel to the People’s Republic of China with a group from the University of Wisconsin. They observed their educational system, visited hospitals, industries, and rural villages, and learned about the culture. She also traveled to New Zealand to observe the Whole Language Approach reading program as was implemented in their school system.

1990 was a turning point in her life. Ada met a handsome knight in shining armor from Jalisco, Mexico. Courtship was a chain of cultural surprises. It is amazing, and often hilarious, how two people who speak the same language can misunderstand, or not understand at all what they are saying to each other. Learning the vast amount of cultural differences and customs became a treasure chest to be opened day after day.

Ada and Gabriel married and their son, Iván, was born before their first wedding anniversary. Following the family and the sun they moved to Texas where their two daughters, Brenda and Angélica, were born. They are raising their children immersed in three cultures, Mexican, Puerto Rican, and American.

Children often ask, “Tell me about when you were a kid.” Telling stories about her childhood inspired Ada to go back to writing.

Ada currently lives with her family in San Antonio, Texas.