History of La Catalina Educational Fundation 

Gabriela de la Vega and Pablo Martinez del Campo, impressed by some individuals in the community who were giving English classes to various groups of people in the town, expressed their vision that La Manzanilla would become the first truly bilingual town in Mexico. In order to see their vision manifest, they initiated and sponsored free English classes for all of the children in the schools and evening adult classes in La Manzanilla in January of 2003.

Quickly recognizing the importance of what Gabriela and Pablo were initiating, Victor Amezcua and Julie Catton, Founders of La Catalina Natural Language School, joined their team and worked to establish La Catalina Educational Foundation, a non-profit organization which has grown to encompass not only language opportunities, but also literacy and mathematics opportunities and providing training in small business development to the local people of La Manzanilla and its surrounding areas.

As La Manzanilla and other towns along the Pacific Coast of Mexico have been attracting a greater number of tourists and foreign residents, this has created an increasing need for educational programs which will support the Mexican community in having more opportunity and success in this changing time and economy.

Over the past three years, La Catalina Educational Foundation has been expanding and enhancing their programs to include:

• Weekly English classes delivered to every grade level in the elementary and middle school

• Bi-weekly multi-level evening English classes for adults

• Periodic teacher training workshops in the high school mathematics department in the Mexican state of Jalisco

• Weekly classes of Folkloric Dance

• Weekly art classes

• On-going tutoring to Mexican children with special needs

• Fundraising efforts for our local schools

• Small business development projects