Interview with Mrs. Sandra Pedraja Calderón
"Music is everything to me, I can't go a day without music."
"Music saved my life"
1. Dikra and Maria – What do you like most about your job?
Sandra- Many things, but above all I would highlight that every day I learn something new, thanks to the contact I have with children and adolescents, who give me a different vision of the world, without prejudice. The school offers me the opportunity to meet many people from different cultures, which is very enriching. I am a very sociable person and I like to deal with people. In addition, the work environment is very pleasant and my colleagues, more than colleagues, are friends.
2. Dikra and Maria – What are your hobbies?
Sandra- I am passionate about traveling, anywhere, it does not have to be far, in all trips you learn, it is one of the most direct ways to get away from the dreaded comfort zone and open your mind. I am also fascinated by Art in all its manifestations, but my true passion is music in all its manifestations, classical, flamenco, contemporary...in fact, I am a music critic for Diario Sur. Throughout my life music has been fundamental, I have organized festivals, collaborated with radio stations, programming content, etc...
3. Dikra and Maria – Where have you worked before?
Sandra- Ugh, I have worked as a caddy's assistant in a golf course in my student days, an advertising model, I have owned bars, a fashion store, a teacher at the School of Tourism in Malaga, I even worked for a year on a boat and I arrived to cross the Atlantic, which is quite an unforgettable life experience. I will never forget the time I lived in the Caribbean and then on the French Riviera, but for that you have to be very young. I started studying Law at the age of 18 and after three years I decided that it was not the job that would make me happy, so I changed my studies and decided on something more in Science, which had always been my thing, like Computer Engineering.
Before coming to Alborán, she worked as an Artistic Director in an Art Gallery, an exciting but very demanding job for a mother.
So, as you can see, I don't get bored (laughing).
4. Dikra and Maria – What do you think about the music? We see that it is essential in your life.
Sandra- Well yes, Music is my great passion, along with Literature, I think they are the two things that have saved me in life, because I had a difficult childhood, and music specifically was medicine for me. When I go to a concert, I feel that the music manages to connect me with my emotions. It makes me travel in space and time, separating what is really important from what is not. Culture is so important to me that it is not an effort for me to move in search of it. I have come to rent a car and travel 1000 kilometers to go to a concert and return the next day. And I continue to do so, soon I will travel to Barcelona to see an Opera at the Liceu and to Paris to see a Cy Twombly exhibition at the Pompidou, although I will not miss out on a contemporary music concert because I cannot go a day without music.
5. Dikra and María- Do you consider going to museums an important activity in your life?
Sandra- Yes, a lot, look, five years ago I didn't know anything about contemporary art. But I began to relate to this world and in a few years, thanks to the fact that we now have an exceptional offer in Malaga, I have been able to meet the most important artists of the artistic avant-garde.
As I have told you, now, in addition to music, I also travel for art.
6. Dikra and Maria- What do you think about team teaching?
Sandra- I believe that team learning is necessary. Imagine that a person lives alone in a cave; No matter how smart she is, no matter how many books she reads, she will always need another perspective, another vision, because working as a team allows you to evolve. The human being would not have reached where he is if there had not been a team behind. A person can advance, but if he does it as a team it will take less time and it will be done in a more enriching way for everyone. This is why I really like the new work methodologies of this College.
7. Dikra and María- And in that sense, what goals would you propose for next year?
Sandra- I would try to follow the innovative line that the school follows in terms of Education, both in terms of new work methodologies and education in values. I have great confidence in the current management team, and we can see that we are all committed to educating in respect, tolerance, generating curiosity through research and that you are the ones creating the content, since you have to be critical and passionate about the life.
8. Dikra and María- What has been your greatest learning throughout life?
Sandra- The hardest thing I've ever done in my life has been having a child. This is the biggest challenge I've ever faced, because every decision you make is influencing another person's life in a crucial way and that loads you with responsibility, but at the same time it's the best thing I've ever done and what more fills me with personal satisfaction.
9. Dikra and Maria- Do you think that previous generations were less distracted than current ones?
Sandra- I think past generations had fewer distractions. Now it is more difficult to concentrate on one thing, because we have more stimuli for good and for bad. We have to learn to prioritize and differentiate what is really necessary from what is unnecessary and superfluous. I think we should get to know each other, know what we are passionate about and try to dedicate ourselves to it. You always have to give your best and follow your goals.
