Advocacy and Strategic Engagement Director — Immigration Legal Program

Vanessa was born and raised in El Salvador. She joined the CARECEN SF team in January
2018 in response to the need to inform, organize, and work hand in hand with the
Temporary Protected Status (TPS) community in the Bay Area on advocacy efforts.
In her current role, Vanessa engages with community members, partner organizations,
elected officials at local, state, and federal levels, U.S. government agencies, as well as
foreign government officials from Central American countries to cultivate and strengthen
working relationships to discuss the different needs and challenges that our communities
face in the U.S. with a focus on finding solutions that address these challenges and other
issues of mutual interest such as protection and the fair treatment of immigrants and
refugees in transit and destination countries, root causes of forced migration among
others.
Vanessa also engages in campaigns that advocate for policies and initiatives to achieve a
sustainable infrastructure for welcoming and integrating immigrants into our communities
to improve their quality of life and help them thrive in the U.S., the right to Due Process,
migrant Health Equity, a legislative path to permanent residency for TPS and DACA
beneficiaries and the urgent need for comprehensive immigration reform.

Team