Summer camp & before and after school programming in Spanish. I am fluent in Spanish, English and Italian. My philosophy of Education is Constructivism.
Blanca Raniolo Olivares, Founder and Executive Director
My name is Blanca Raniolo and I am from Venezuela. I earned a BA in Education in 1992 and a Masters in Social Communication with specialization in social development in 2001 both with honors from Andres Bello Catholic University in Venezuela. In 2005 I received my Masters of Education degree from Hamline University with 4.0 point GPA wh
en I won a scholarship from the Organization of America States (OAS) in Washington DC. My professional history includes working for eighteen years consistently in the education field, administration, and as a supervisor. As a leader, I have facilitated workshops for adults with a focus on Latinos in low-income communities. I am author of two books about education, director of an instructional video of better parenting and author of multiple articles on education in several Latino newspapers and magazines in the Twin Cities and in my country. I won the 25 On the Rise Award in the Twin Cities, Minnesota. I was an elementary school teacher at Aurora Charter School and worked at La Escuelita for more than 5 years as the Program Director and was responsible for overseeing all aspects of programming with Latino youth (6-12 grades), parent’s workshops, teaching the teacher workshops, partnering with Minneapolis Public Schools (SES/ALC) and the training of tutors both at la Escuelita and as contracted by the University of Minnesota, I have been a part of the Latino Youth Development Committee since 2005. I also worked at El Colegio High School with the after school program Juventud Conectada in south Minneapolis as Director of Community Outreach, School Connection and Parent Engagement, where I had a wonderful experience working with diverse population and as community leader and mentor as well. Currently, I am working as a literacy coach at Windom and I am the Executive Director of Windom Enrichment Resource Center (WERC) after school programming at Windom as well. I believe in educating by reflecting experiences in a learning environment and constructing an understanding of the world we live in. I believe that education is an instrument of liberation where if you have access to an education, you will be not living in the darkness of ignorance. Outside of school I enjoy going to the gym, dancing Zumba, and traveling, and every Friday my family has a tradition for over twenty years: “Friday nights” where my sons, my husband and I watch a good movie and make hot dog and popcorn together at home. Mi nombre es Blanca Raniolo y yo soy de Venezuela. Hablo español, italiano e ingles. En Venezuela recibí mi licenciatura en Educación en el año 1992 y mi primera maestría en comunicación social con especialización en desarrollo social en el 2001, ambos títulos fueron con mención honorífica en la Universidad Catolica Andres Bello, en Venezuela. En el año 2005 estudie en la universidad de Hamline ya que obtuve una beca de la Organización de los Estados Americanos (OEA) en Washington DC. para estudiar la maestría en Educación, allí me gradúe en el año 2005 y recibí mi titulo de master en educación con el puntaje mas alto 4 puntos. Mi historia profesional incluye dieciocho anos consecutivos en el campo educativo, administrativo y como supervisora. Como líder, he facilitado muchos talleres de capacitación para padres /adultos latinos con un enfoque en las comunidades de bajo recursos económicos. Soy autora de dos libros acerca de educación, directora de video instruccional para mejorar las relaciones con padres y autor de múltiples artículos en muchas revistas y periódicos latinos en las Twin Cities y en mi país. Yo gane el premio de 25 On the Rise Award de las ciudades gemelas en Minnesota, donde se le otorga a las personas lideres de la comunidad latina. Fui maestra de educación primaria en la escuela de Aurora Charter School y trabajé en La Escuelita por más de 5 años como directora de los programas después de escuela y fui responsable de: todo la programación con jóvenes latinos entre los grados 6-12, talleres de padres, convenios con el distrito de Minneapolis (SES/ALC) y la capacitación y entrenamiento de tutores. Igualmente, formé parte del comité para el desarrollo de jóvenes latinos. Trabajé para El Colegio High School en su programa después de la escuela llamado Juventud Conectada en el sur de Minneapolis como Directora de enlace para padres, extensión comunitaria y conexión en las escuelas, donde fue una excelente experiencia trabajando con comunidades diversas como mentora y líder comunitaria. Actualmente trabajo en la escuela de Windom como entrenadora de lecto-escritura y soy la directora ejecutiva de los programas después de escuela de Windom Enrichment Resource Center (WERC). Mi filosofía de educación es constructivista. Yo creo en la educación, reflejando experiencias en un ambiente de aprendizaje y la construcción de una comprensión del mundo en que vivimos. Creo que la educación es un instrumento de liberación de los seres humanos en la que si usted tiene acceso a una educación, no van a vivir en la oscuridad de la ignorancia. Fuera de la escuela me gusta ir al gimnasio, bailar zumba y viajar, y todos los viernes mi familia tiene una tradición de más de veinte años: "viernes por la noche", donde mis hijos, mi esposo y yo vemos una buena película y hacemos perros calientes con palomitas de maíz juntos en casa. En Familia Episode: Entrevista con Blanca Raniolo : http://mtn.org/Video/community/enfamilia/enfamilia12.html
05/27/2026
Help your child catch up during the summer with tutoring.
Monday - Thursday for six weeks of summer. English / Spanish / or both!
Theater at Nokomis has come an end. See you next school year.
Kristina from phantom chorus theatre is still bringing her skills to the summer camp!
05/20/2026
Parents and families make our program possible. Thank you to all our BLC parents! ❤️
05/15/2026
Prepare yourself for no school days during the new school year
BLC has you covered on 6 of them... and the first one in September we're headed to Fort Snelling with Wilderness Inquiry!
We're here to support and ensure your kids come back home tired, with new friends and memories
05/13/2026
Tortillas verdes 💚🍌 (Green Tortillas)
An Ecuadorian dish made out of mashed and boiled green plantains, stuffed with cheese
Is there a better way to experience culture then through food?!?
01/21/2026
Sign your little ones up to Theater with Kristina, starting in less than two weeks!
01/01/2026
We’re saying goodbye to 2025, and with that we’d like to bring gratitude to all families who choose BLC and for those who supported us through fundraising.
You made 2025 possible for us.
We are excited for what 2026 brings us. More fundraising, more community building and scholarships for even more families!
In the end we hope to bring the joy of BLC to every child who needs it, no matter their circumstances.
Thank you all for supporting our mission! ❤️
12/20/2025
Are your kids still making 67 jokes or has it come to an end yet?