Our Vision

Minds Wide Open.

Our Mission

CREA elevates Nicaraguans and their communities through literacy and learning.

Our Story

CREA’s journey began in the spring of 2011 when a group of friends, including the founding members of CREA, came together with a shared vision to address the region’s limited access to books and educational resources. This group worked alongside several local community members, organizations, and schools to promote literacy. What started as a small lending library, operating out of a utility closet, quickly grew into something much more impactful. With a commitment to building a future where education, opportunity, and growth could flourish, CREA transformed from a grassroots effort into a thriving 501(c)(3) nonprofit and a legal Nicaraguan organization. Through generous donations of books, computers, internet access, and other critical resources, CREA was able to lay the foundation for being a provider of long-term educational support in the community.

Since our official founding in 2016, CREA has expanded significantly to meet the evolving needs of the communities we serve. Today, we provide three core programs: Library Services, Academic Success, and Youth Development, each designed to support individuals at every stage of their educational journey.

CREA Library + Learning Center

CREA’s homebase, the CREA Library + Learning Center, is the primary site for our three core programs: Library Services, Academic Success, and Youth Development. This center serves as a hub for educational activities, offering a variety of learning spaces designed to inspire children, youth, and their families.

At the CREA Library + Learning Center, we have a formal lending library with over 10,000 books in Spanish, a computer lab for education-related uses, and ample covered outdoor space for teaching and learning along with community activities. Recently, CREA added six new brick-and-mortar classrooms, further expanding our capacity to provide high-quality educational experiences for children and adolescents in a safe environment.

The Library + Learning Center is the central hub for CREA’s Academic Success programming, where we provide literacy, math, and science instruction to kids of all ages, serving children and youth from 22 remote communities. Our teachers work with students in small groups, utilizing personalized approaches such as guided reading, phonics, writing, and interactive math techniques to help students build strong foundational skills. These efforts are reinforced by ongoing professional development for teachers to ensure high-quality instruction across all subjects.

Our Youth Development program supports secondary students with a range of subjects and skills, including English, digital literacy, and elective classes such as the arts, gardening, and career exploration. CREA also offers robotics workshops for adolescent girls, introducing them to computer programming and laying the foundation for ongoing STEM learning. Additionally, students develop leadership, financial literacy, and life skills, preparing them for future challenges and opportunities. As part of our commitment to expanding educational pathways, CREA provides scholarships for university or vocational training, supporting adolescents in their pursuit of further studies and career development. We also offer Community Health classes at the Library + Learning Center, addressing important adolescent topics such as building healthy relationships, promoting responsible behaviors, and supporting mental and physical well-being.

Outreach

CREA’s Outreach Program provides educational resources at 10 key outreach sites, extending the impact of our work far beyond the walls of our Library + Learning Center. Our educational outreach visits ensure that even the most remote areas have access to books, learning materials, and academic support. By providing support directly in these communities, we remove barriers to learning and foster a culture of reading and lifelong learning.

The Mobile Library, a bookmobile that delivers books and educational programming weekly, plays a crucial role in reaching participants in the most remote and mountainous areas. Community members often walk long distances to our outreach sites, where they can check out books and participate in interactive programs. During these visits, our trained teachers engage younger children through interactive read-alouds, songs, and movement activities that build vocabulary and foundational literacy skills. Students participate in small group discussions focused on reading comprehension and critical thinking, equipping them with tools to succeed in school. Each week, both children and mothers borrow books from CREA’s Mobile Library, bringing stories and learning into their homes. Access to books in the home is a powerful driver of literacy development, especially in communities where educational resources are scarce or non-existent.

The Mommy and Me Program supports early literacy development for our youngest participants and their mothers. Mothers and children connect through books, fostering a culture of reading both at home and in the community. Mothers also receive guidance on how to support their children’s learning at home—and, for some, begin to build their own literacy skills.

CREA’s Reading Club Program organizes school-aged children by reading levels, giving them access to copies of the same book. Teachers facilitate engagement with the material through Guided Reading, encouraging participants to read, analyze, and discuss the stories with their peers. This program fosters improved reading comprehension, critical thinking, and an overall enthusiasm for continued learning.

Academic Success outreach provides active learning activities, engaging students in real-world tasks that build comprehension, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills that help children succeed in school. Our literacy program includes phonics, Guided Reading, and vocabulary development, while CREA’s math teachers use a hands-on approach to help students grasp complex concepts and build foundational math skills.

CREA’s Community Health outreach supports youth development by providing workshops and resources on topics such as healthy relationships, drug use prevention, the safe use of technology, and personal responsibility. These sessions emphasize the importance of self-care, emotional well-being, and building resilience, equipping adolescents with the tools they need to make informed decisions and navigate life’s challenges.

Through these programs, CREA’s outreach efforts provide individuals and families with valuable educational resources, fostering a culture of literacy and learning in the most remote areas. We help children and families overcome barriers to education, offering opportunities for growth and development that may otherwise be inaccessible.