Our Story
Co-founded in 2007 by Juan Velasco and Annie Boyd-Ramirez, PV continues to work in partnership with a local nonprofit, The New Dawn Associacion of El Salvador (ANADES), to financially support initiatives that increase enrollment and access to their child development center, educational opportunities, and mental health services for marginalized families impacted by poverty and social violence in an urban area of San Ramon.
Since 2014, Programa Velasco’s core service has been its Women’s Empowerment Project (WEP), which trains entrepreneurs to achieve more financial independence and increase gender equality in their families. We implement this project with entrepreneurs in San Ramon, and, since 2019, in the community of Tepecoyo.
In early 2022, we expanded our programs in Tepecoyo and launched Families United in Tepecoyo (FUTP), which addresses the lack of early childhood education (ECE) opportunities in rural El Salvador. This program provides training, resources and support to parents and caregivers to help them become educators and mentors in their children’s lives.
Our complementary, cross-generational interventions increase the engagement of women in public life and foster positive educational and social outcomes for their children.
Our Mission
Educate and empower children and women entrepreneurs in El Salvador to build strong families and create better futures.
Vision
Our vision is families that thrive; educated and emboldened to interrupt generational cycles of poverty and build peaceful community.
