Obed Arango

Obed Arango is a Mexican immigrant living in the US since 2000. He is from Mexico City and is the father of two Mexican daughters who he teachers to never forget their language and ther cultural roots. WIth his daughters, he learned to resist the anti-immigrant environment and together they explored the principles of humanists Paulo Freire y de Martin Luther King, Jr. Following this path and with the spirit of other members of the immigrant community founded CCATE as a center for social transformation. He serves as CCATE’s Director, and also is Instructor at the University of Pennsylvania. For Obed, “CCATE is a space for us to dream and exist, and to see our faces, skin color(s) and ways of speaking as integral to our identities y dignity.”

María Guadalupe Castillo

María Guadalupe Castillo is an immigrant from Palmarito Tochapán in the state of Puebla, México. She arrived in this country 14 years ago. She has worked in office cleaning since coming to the US. She has two sons who are her reason to continue learning more every day. CCATE has given her the opportunity to be able to share her opinion or suggest different propositions. She loves to help with what she can. Her life changed when she first arrived at CCATE because she had such a need to spend time with others who spoke her language. She believes that CCATE is a truly transformative place for people, and that spending time there as a teacher, you leave your heart in everything you do there.

Horacio De La Luz Lopez

Horacio De La Luz Lopez is a Mexican from a town called San Bartolo in the state of Puebla. He has lived in the US for 20 years. He has three children and works in construction. He is a CCATE member and leader, and believes that in the CCATE community, everyone learns something new every day.

María de Lourdes Lopez Flores

María de Lourdes Lopez Flores is a Mexican woman from the state of Guerrero. She has been in the US for 18 years.She is a woman who loves her family. Her  family is built on a base of love and respect. They are also her  motor for fighting in this world. She works at home and with her children. She loves helping but above all, she learns from others. As a member of CCATE she can say that to to give and to receive is what motivates her to get ahead in life. She has goals and many resolutions thanks to her artistic companions.

Holly Link

Holly Link grew up mostly in Miami, FL. She identifies as a White cisgender woman with Anglo-European roots.She teaches at Temple University and the University of Pennsylvania in the School for Social Policy and Practice. She has been connected with Norristown since 2008 as a doctoral student at Penn in Educational Linguistics. She directs educational programs and research at CCATE. As a non-Latina leader, she works to acknowledge with the CCATE community how her privilege is implicated in social hierarchies and power relationships, and more broadly in the structures she works to change. Her dream and commitment is to co-research with the CCATE community. For Holly, CCATE is her second home and her primary place of learning.

Diana Lugo Martínez

Diana Lugo Martínez is proudly Mexican from Cadereyta, Querétero, and an undocumented immigrant woman who has lived in the US since 2002. Over the years, she and her partner  have raised a beautiful family who are her motor for life, inspiration and strength. In the last years, her partner and children have accompanied her in what she considers is her mission, which is TO BE and to serve in CCATE. CCATE is a space that liberates, transforms, humanizes and dignifies. She firmly believes that with love, support, education and hard work, the community can work and grow together every day. At CCATE there are several mottos that have emerged from inside of our community, and she wishes to share two of them. The first is, “a talent not share is a talent wasted.” This shows how with humility and critical thinking, one can break with narratives that dehumanize the immigrant community. She comments, “at CCATE we give with our hearts, we see each other as equals amd we believe that ‘all of the knowledge of the world for and from everyone,’ is a reality. CCATE is a safe space where we are free and where we see ourselves represented as a community, and where we give welcome to everyone.”

Laura Sanchez

Laura Sanchez is  Mexican immigrant from Acapulco, Guerrero, .México, She arrived in the USA 19 years ago. She has worked in restaurants, cleaned offices, and is currently a nanny for a family with three children. She is also the mother of two children, José Luís who is 21 years-old and works in the restaurant industry, and Alondra, who is 16 years-old. I love them and we are CCATE. CCATE is an incredibly marvelous place. It’s a place where we come together to learn and collaborate with a lot of love, with extremely intelligent and talented people. Moreover,  CCATE is where we discover our artistic talents and where we discover our love of reading and to continue learning.