Education

CoCoDA and ADES inaugurate Student House Iván Villasboa
08 Aug
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CoCoDA Inaugurates a Student House for Young People from Rural Communities

After two and a half years, CoCoDA Executive Director Jim Mulholland, CoCoDA board members Iván Villasboa, Deborah Payne and Genevieve Ryann as well as Indiana University representative Jennifer Custer returned to El Salvador to reconnect with partners, visit recent projects and inaugurate two of our greatest collaborations during the pandemic.Casa Iván VillasboaOn Thursday, June 9th, our longtime partner ADES and CoCoDA inaugurated the scholarship program resident dormitory and renamed the building “Casa Iván Villasboa” in honor of the years of...

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21 Dec
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Making Central American Dreams Come True

In the past, we’ve often emphasized how your Christmas donation to CoCoDA would help us purchase so many bricks, books, medicines, solar panels, and other tangible items.  While these are important, those objects are always connected to real people. This year, we’re asking you to donate to people and their dreams!Rosa Murillo is better known as Morena. She has been a nurse since the civil war in El Salvador. Since then, she worked as a nurse for her community, paid and unpaid.A donation...

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Continuing Education Program
02 Oct
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CoCoDA Adjusts to the Pandemic

The pandemic has changed life for all of us – in the United States and in Central America.  One of the chief challenges for CoCoDA has been how to continue to meet our mission of connecting North Americans and Central Americans. We had to cancel all delegations during 2020 and 2021. With the Delta variant hitting Central America this month, we cancelled the delegations planned for January and February of 2022.  These challenges have forced us to be creative in continuing to...

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28 Jan
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Speakers Bureau – An approach to Central America

The CoCoDA Speakers Bureau is designed to create one-hour Zoom presentations that: Sustain positive connections between Central American and our partner universities, churches, and Clubs during the pandemic when face to face interactions in Central America are impractical. And, Generate revenue for CoCoDA during a period when we cannot sustain the income normally generated by delegations.These one-hour presentations could include one or more of the following:1.   A CoCoDA staff person presenting on a subject or theme.2.     A staff person...

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28 Sep
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CoCoDA celebrates the life and work of Iván Villasboa

On the 50th birthday of Ivan José María Villasboa, we celebrate his life, his dedication to the people of Central America and his years of service to Companion Community Development Alternatives (CoCoDA).  On October 31st, Ivan will be retiring from his position as CoCoDA Program Director and transitioning to the CoCoDA Board of Directors. For the first time in nearly 30 years, he won’t be involved with the day to day activities of CoCoDA.  This is possible because of his diligence...

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Introduction to the history of El Salvador - CoCoDA
30 Jan
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Seventeen Centre College students study and work in Santa Marta and Masatepeque, El Salvador

Seventeen students from Centre College, Kentucky visited Santa Marta, Cabañas and Masatepeque in Suchitoto in a course of study and service learning. During sixteen days, Centre College students were part of the two communities, living in homestays and working side by side while learning the culture, the history and lifestyles of the local people. In Santa Marta, the students visited CoCoSI (a HIV/AIDS prevention organization), Sueños de Madera (a woodworking cooperative) and the Organic Farming Cooperative of the Santa Marta community. At each...

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03 Oct
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Scholarship program is a sign of hope for youth in Zacataloza, Nicaragua

CoCoDA is commited to the education of youth in rural Central American communities by supporting their efforts to continue their studies in primary, high school and university. We do this by building schools, supporting teachers and providing scholarships. In 2019, the scholarship program in Zacataloza, Nicaragua continued to provide seven deserving scholars the opportunity to continue their secondary education as well as facilitate the attendance of one community member to a university nursing program. These young people, selected and monitored by...

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Scholarship - CoCoDA
12 Jul
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Youth Leadership Education Campaign (YLC)

In the past ten years, CoCoDA has partnered with other organizations to support the Youth Leadership Education Campaign (YLC). This program helps between 30-35 youth attend college each year from the Santa Marta and Suchitoto regions. While tuition is only $50 a year in El Salvador, living in San Salvador is very expensive. The YLC program provides two rent free student houses. This is not a loan program. As part of this scholarship program, these students commit to return to their...

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Scholarship house in San Salvador for students from communities
26 Feb
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Scholarship House becomes a Reality

In February of 2019, after years of fundraising, CoCoDA provided our partners ADES with a $75,000 grant to purchase a large home in San Salvador to serve as a dormitory for the Youth Leadership Campaign (YLC). After years of paying rent, the program now has a permanent home within walking distance from the University of El Salvador. For many years, CoCoDA has been supporting the Youth Leadership Campaign (YLC) in El Salvador. This unique program provides room and board for about...

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