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About Us

Who We Are

ConnectED is a nonprofit organization working to improve access, quality, and relevance of education for youth in Central America. Through the Fellows Program, ConnectED harnesses the energy and commitment of local education leaders to tackle pressing education challenges by nurturing, building, and mobilizing their skills and strengths to design projects that improve educational outcomes for youth in their communities.

Our Mission

To improve access, quality, and relevance of education for youth in rural Central America.

Our Vision

A world where a young person in Central America has access to a quality education that allows them to contribute to their community and succeed in a global economy.

OUR STORY

The Raechel & Jackie Foundation (RJF) was founded in 2013 in loving memory of Raechel and Jacqueline Houck. The two young sisters' passion for education and children remains the inspiration for our work. Guided by the lessons of the past to embrace a new chapter of growth, we changed our name to ConnectED in 2019.

Thanks to its co-founders (Cally Houck and Sooni Gillett), early community partners, and dedicated local staff, we developed our unique strategy and approach to address root causes of education challenges.

ConnectED utilizes principles of human-centered design to work in partnership with people, organizations, and communities in rural areas of Central America to discover local solutions that improve education outcomes.

In each of the communities where ConnectED works, we want to see all young people developing competencies to reach their full potential and create better futures for their families and communities.

Our Timeline

2013
RJF is Born
Co-founded by Cally and Sooni, RJF embarks on program research in Nicaragua and Guatemala to gain insights into the development of a community-driven education solution that will have sustained impact.
2013
2014
Nicaragua on the Map
Guided by insights from local communities, RJF initiates the Fellows Model with the goal to bring relevant and locally-based solutions addressing educational challenges to Nicaragua.
2014
2015–2017
Meet the Fellows
RJF welcomes its first group of Fellows who engage their communities to implement projects that create new schools, improve computer literacy, train local teachers, improve water management, and more.
2015–2017
2018
Pushing Forward
Ours is also a story of resilience as we navigate our operations and continued support for our Fellows amidst political unrest and economic instability within the region. During this period RJF also invests in a vigorous strategic planning effort to evaluate its impact to-date and refine its Fellows Model for scale and replication.
2018
2019
RJF is ConnectED
RJF rebrands as ConnectED to focus on bridging education leaders and communities to resources that will improve learning in Central America. ConnectED embarks on the first phase of its strategic plan, developing long-term partnerships with organizations and communities in Guatemala, to implement its revised Fellows Model there and beyond.
2019
2020-2021
Fellows in Guatemala
Working with key local partners, ConnectED identifies and supports its first two cohorts of Fellows in Guatemala who, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, engage their communities to implement projects that create digital libraries with open education resources, school nutrition programs, safe spaces, and more. In 2021, to support local in-country leadership of the organization and in line with our values, ConnectED transitioned its primary CEO role to be based in Central America.
2020-2021
2022 Fellows Cohort
In January, 2022, ConnectED welcomed 11 new Fellows from 11 different communities throughout Guatemala. Within the cohort are four primary school teachers, five combined principals and teachers, one librarian, and one education advocate. After welcoming students back into the classroom, they are engaging their communities to address pressing education challenges that have been accelerated by the pandemic.
2022-2025
Our Vision for 2025
ConnectED is working to further prove and scale its Fellows Model throughout Guatemala and beyond. By 2025 we aim to improve education outcomes for more than 20,000 rural youth in more than 100 communities throughout Guatemala by building the capacity of local education leaders and piloting locally-driven solutions. During this time we are also focused on developing partnerships and resources to scale the Fellows Model to other countries within Central America.
2022-2025
The ConnectED Team
We are fortunate to have a dedicated and experienced team with diverse expertise in education, conservation, advocacy, nonprofit administration and community development.
MEET THE TEAM
Get Involved

How can you make a difference?

Give.

You can make the transformative power of education possible through a simple donation.

Volunteer.

Your talents and skills can help support our organization and the work of our Fellows.

Collaborate.

You can join us in improving education outcomes in Central America.