As an AmeriCorps VISTA member, Janeen is excited to spend her year of service with WAGES. A strong believer in advancement via individual determination, she joined the WAGES team in February 2012 as the Program Development Associate. In this role, she supports the Co-op Development team through market research and assistance in launching a new cooperative business. She is committed to supporting and advancing economic opportunities for low-income women.

Originally from California’s San Joaquin Valley, Janeen received her B.A. in Economics and Latin American Studies at the University of California San Diego (UCSD), where she spent a year participating in the Education Abroad Program in Italy and Brazil. While in Rio de Janeiro, she had the opportunity to teach conversational English for a local NGO (Unicom) in the favela of Rocinha. Back at home, she has served as an advocate, peer mentor, and tutor for underserved students of color at UCSD and Monache High School in Porterville, CA. As the daughter of Mexican immigrants, Janeen owes her success to her parents' journey and to the unconditional love and support of her sister.

“Podemos y debemos”