Welcome to Raising A Village!

Alexia Antunez

Ana R. Ventura-Molina

Raising A Village Foundation is extremely pleased to welcome our two newest AmeriCorps Site Leads for the Driven 2 Succeed program; Alexia Antunez  and Ana Ventura-Molina! Our AmeriCorps member Site Leads for Raising A Village Foundation (RAV) support the program administration and logistics of the Driven 2 Succeed program and directly assist our Executive Director. In these roles, Alexia and Ana will help implement our in-school programs, coordinate events, and serve as a primary contact person for teachers and community partners. They will both work with our Driven 2 Succeed Student Guides and assist with the collection of data for program evaluation purposes. These roles allow our team to grow and better serve our partners and (most importantly) our students! 

Alexia Antunez is a 2017 graduate from Kansas State University with a Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education and a concentration in English as a Second Language. She taught in the Kansas City area for two years as both a Special Education Paraprofessional and a second-grade classroom teacher. As a Special Education Paraprofessional, she worked with classroom teachers making modifications and accommodations for students with special needs and Behavioral Disorders. Ms. Antunez then brought her passions for both teaching and learning to a second grade classroom of 23 multicultural students, including ESL and Special Education students. In 2019, Ms. Antunez served 9 months with the Peace Corps in Ethiopia as a TEFL/English Language Teaching Specialist, working primarily with high school students. Starting July 2020, she will serve in Washington D.C. as a CCMA AmeriCorps VISTA member with on-site staff from the Wesley Theological Seminary and the Raising A Village Foundation. Ms. Antunez looks forward to further  encouraging students' educational responsibilities while advocating for them both within and outside of their classrooms and exploring D.C. with her dog Maya. 

Ana R. Ventura-Molina is a recently evacuated Returned Peace Corps Mexico Volunteer, who served at public technological university as an English as a Second Language teacher. Through collaborative work with host country nationals, she helped increase students' capacity to speak in the target language. Ana is a dedicated advocate for social justice, who through fostering inclusive spaces, has empowered students, colleagues, and peers to channel as well as challenge their creativity, and knowledge to transcend all boundaries and become agents of change in their communities. She earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Maryland- College Park in Government & Politics and Spanish Language, Literature, and Culture. She is from the Washington, D.C. area. Ana hopes to gain capacity building best practices in this context and strengthen leadership skills to better work with the communities serviced.