Nancy Lugo’s passion for childhood caregiving and education led her to the WellPower in 2018, when she joined the Providers Advancing School Outcomes (PASO) Program. PASO is a community-based intensive training program for early childhood caregivers seeking to close the achievement gap for Hispanic/Latinx children.

Just a few months after graduating with honors from PASO, Nancy got the opportunity to take her leadership to the next level. She represented the WellPower at the 2019 Aspen ThinkXChange alongside her husband Jesus, their baby Leonardo and Michael Niyompong, WellPower’s Vice President of Strategic Community Partnerships. The ThinkXChange event, hosted by the Aspen Institute, focused on advancing family success. It centered around the voices of those most impacted by family and work policies – parents like Nancy and Jesus.

“I have never attended an event so organized and valuable for the community,” Nancy said. “It was a great experience to explore community problems related to childhood education, which is so important because children are our future.”

By sharing their stories and bold ideas, parent leaders worked alongside organizational and policy leaders from across the country. Together, they strategized new ways to move families forward, specifically economically marginalized families.

“PASO provides countless tools to guide children’s learning and become a better childcare provider,” Nancy said. “It also helps families a lot economically to have the extra income, which leads to more opportunities.”

In addition to PASO, community members get involved with the WellPower in many ways across the city. In the future, the WellPower looks forward to expanding its role as a connector to ensure that community voices are centered in decisions that will impact their individual well-being and that of their family, city and society.