ConTextos
ConTextos is a US-El Salvador 501c3 non-profit, founded in 2010, that delivers trauma-informed storytelling, literacy, and restorative-practice programs to children, educators, families, and justice-involved adults in Chicago and El Salvador through direct facilitation in schools and community settings.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What ConTextos does
ConTextos is a 501c3 tax-exempt non-governmental organization founded in 2010 and headquartered in Chicago with a regional office in San Salvador, El Salvador. The organization delivers trauma-informed and healing-centered programs that use storytelling, reading, writing, and reflective dialogue as tools to promote literacy, critical thinking, emotional well-being, and community connection among children, educators, families, and system-involved adults.
Its core product surface comprises the Authors Circle writing-and-publication program, Teacher Training, School Library installation and support, Restorative Practices consulting, and flagship programs including the annual Congreso Docente teacher congress, the Mango Dorado Fellowship, Tiramos la Biblio por la Ventana public reading initiative, Tarde de Lectura, and the Chicago-based Into A Black Beyond arts program. Publications are distributed via the third-party Issuu platform. ConTextos does not operate proprietary technology; its value is delivered through trained facilitators working directly in schools, community centers, correctional facilities, and public spaces across Chicago and El Salvador.
The business model is a donation-and-grant-funded non-profit (EIN: 27-3326532), registered in both the United States and El Salvador. Revenue streams comprise individual donations, foundation grants and awards (e.g., Fundación Gloria Kriete, Fundación Infantil Pestalozzi, ¡Cómo no!, Bread Loaf Teacher Network), and program-directed giving. Recognition includes the 2019 US Library of Congress International Innovation Award. The organization is governed by an independent Board of Directors and led by Global CEO Dr. Cecilia Cardesa (appointed February 2025) with Chicago Co-Directors Kali Rose and Kalief Dinkins (appointed June 2025) and El Salvador Director and Co-Founder Zoila Recinos. To date, ConTextos has reached more than 76,000 people and directly served over 3,300 since inception.
ConTextos firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- ConTextos
- Legal name
- ConTextos
- Website
- https://contextos.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- ConTextos is a US-El Salvador 501c3 non-profit, founded in 2010, that delivers trauma-informed storytelling, literacy, and restorative-practice programs to children, educators, families, and justice-involved adults in Chicago and El Salvador through direct facilitation in schools and community settings.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
ConTextos industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Literacy and Community Education Services
- NAICS
- Individual and Family Services (6241), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Social Services (8300)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Trauma-Informed Care & Crisis Response (School-Based) (EDAKAMAF)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Behavioral & Social-Emotional Support (ABA, PBIS, Counseling) (EDAJAKAE), Special Needs Skill-Building & Therapy Learning Apps (Autism, OT/PT, Life Skills) (EDAFAKAJ)
Keywords
Where ConTextos is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
ConTextos business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Donations and Charitable Contributions: ConTextos operates as a 501c3 tax-exempt non-governmental organization (EIN: 27-3326532) registered in the United States and El Salvador. The organization relies primarily on donations from individuals and institutional funders to sustain programs.
- Foundation Grants and Awards: ConTextos receives funding through foundation grants and awards, such as the Library of Congress International Innovation Award (2019) and prizes from Fundación Gloria Kriete.
- Program-based Support: Specific donation campaigns for Chicago, El Salvador, and scholarship programs allow donors to direct contributions to specific geographic areas or initiatives.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels8 records
ConTextos product offering
Product offeringCore offering
ConTextos is a nonprofit organization that delivers trauma-informed, healing-centered programs using storytelling, reading, reflective dialogue, and restorative practices to promote literacy, critical thinking, and emotional healing. Core offerings include the Authors Circle writing program, Teacher Training, School Library installation and support, and restorative practices consulting, delivered directly through schools, community centers, public spaces, and correctional facilities in Chicago and El Salvador. The organization sustains operations through donations, foundation grants, and program-directed contributions rather than commercial sales.
Product overview
ConTextos is a nonprofit organization offering trauma-informed, healing-centered programs centered on storytelling, literacy, and restorative practices. The core offerings include the Authors Circle writing program, Teacher Training, School Library installation and support, and Restorative Practices consulting. Programs are delivered through both in-person facilitation and publications. Key programs include 'Tiramos la Biblio por la Ventana' (an initiative taking reading to public spaces), the annual Congreso Docente conference, Mango Dorado Fellowship for teacher leadership, and monthly Tarde de Lectura reading sessions. The organization operates in Chicago and El Salvador, working with communities, schools, and correctional facilities. Publications and resources are distributed through platforms like Issuu.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Authors Circle Writing circles where participants develop and publish their own books through a facilitated process of reflection, writing, sharing, and revision. Delivered in schools, community centers, and correctional facilities to youth and adults.
- Teacher Training Professional development programs for educators in literacy instruction, library management, social-emotional learning, and restorative practices. Designed for teachers in Chicago and El Salvador.
- School Libraries Installation and support of school libraries with high-quality books, ongoing teacher training, and community reading programs for partner schools in underserved communities.
- Restorative Practices Consulting Co-design, facilitation, and program development consulting that supports community and institutional resilience using trauma-informed and restorative practices methodology.
- Soy Autor Publication Program Author program enabling participants to write and publish their personal stories, with publications available through the Issuu digital platform under the Soy Autor collection.
- Tiramos la Biblio por la Ventana Annual initiative that takes libraries and reading into public spaces (parks, plazas, streets) to promote community reading and connection across El Salvador.
- Congreso Docente (Teacher Congress) Annual conference for teachers bringing together educators for reflection, networking, recognition, and professional development. Held in Morazán and San Salvador.
- Mango Dorado Fellowship Leadership fellowship selecting teachers for advanced training in storytelling, restorative practices, and network building, with recognition awards for innovative classroom practices.
- Tarde de Lectura Monthly reading afternoons featuring read-alouds, dialogue, drawing, and dancing for children, families, and community members.
- Into A Black Beyond Healing-centered arts programming in Chicago using creative expression and storytelling to build connection and empowerment among community participants.
- Recargando Historias Fortaleciendo Voces Project that supports 75 teachers to be trained in libraries and receive high-quality books for their schools, funded through Fundación Gloria Kriete.
Quantifiable outcome
- 76,000+ people reached since 2010
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use ConTextos
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
ConTextos technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
ConTextos partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and flagship.
- ¡Cómo no!coreA German non-profit association that sends books to rural schools in El Salvador. They partner with ConTextos to provide high-quality books and support reading programs in underserved communities. ¡Cómo no! also supports the annual teacher congress and provides ongoing accompaniment to communities.
- Bread Loaf Teacher NetworkminorSupports the Mango Dorado Fellowship program, providing professional development and leadership training for selected teachers in El Salvador.
- Library of CongressflagshipAwarded ConTextos the 2019 International Innovation Award, recognizing their innovative work in restorative practices and education.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
ConTextos competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- The Telling Room: The Telling Room is a nonprofit writing center that helps young people write and publish stories, sharing ConTextos's storytelling-as-transformation thesis and youth-author publishing approach.
- 826 National: 826 National runs youth writing and publishing centers across the US, closely paralleling ConTextos's Authors Circle model where young people develop and publish their own stories as a vehicle for identity development and literacy.
- Room to Read: Room to Read operates international literacy and school library programs across multiple countries, mirroring ConTextos's combination of school library installation, literacy instruction, and teacher capacity building.
- StoryCorps: StoryCorps preserves and shares personal stories as a tool for connection and empathy, sharing ConTextos's foundational premise that storytelling itself is the intervention rather than just a delivery mechanism.
- LitWorld: LitWorld combines literacy programs with social-emotional learning through its LitClub model, directly comparable to ConTextos's pairing of literacy work with SEL and trauma-informed practice in underserved communities.
- First Book: First Book distributes high-quality books and educational resources to programs serving children from low-income families, overlapping with ConTextos's school library installation and book-pipeline partnerships (e.g., ¡Cómo no!).
- National Writing Project: NWP is a US network of teacher-led professional development in writing instruction, comparable to ConTextos's annual Congreso Docente and teacher training programs in restorative practices and literacy.
- Big Thought: Big Thought delivers creative youth development and arts-education programming in underserved Dallas-area communities, comparable to ConTextos's Into A Black Beyond healing-centered arts programming in Chicago.
Broad incumbents
- Reach Out and Read: Reach Out and Read is a larger, more established literacy nonprofit operating across all 50 US states, overlapping with ConTextos's book-distribution and literacy-promotion work but with a much broader pediatric clinical anchor.
- PEN America: PEN America is a larger literary and free-expression organization whose education and prison-writing programs share thematic overlap with ConTextos's carceral Authors Circles and storytelling-as-healing work.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
ConTextos social profiles
Digital presenceConTextos financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
ConTextos leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
ConTextos funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
ConTextos M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about ConTextos
What does ConTextos do?
ConTextos is a nonprofit organization that delivers trauma-informed, healing-centered programs using storytelling, reading, reflective dialogue, and restorative practices to promote literacy, critical thinking, and emotional healing. Core offerings include the Authors Circle writing program, Teacher Training, School Library installation and support, and restorative practices consulting, delivered directly through schools, community centers, public spaces, and correctional facilities in Chicago and El Salvador. The organization sustains operations through donations, foundation grants, and program-directed contributions rather than commercial sales.
Is ConTextos a public or private company?
ConTextos is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was ConTextos founded?
ConTextos was founded in 2010. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is ConTextos based?
ConTextos is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does ConTextos make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Donations and Charitable Contributions are the primary driver. The others are foundation Grants and Awards and program-based Support.
Who are ConTextos's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are The Telling Room, 826 National, Room to Read, StoryCorps, LitWorld, First Book, National Writing Project and Big Thought. Broad incumbents are Reach Out and Read and PEN America.
Does ConTextos have an API?
No public API is recorded for ConTextos.
What industry is ConTextos in?
ConTextos's product category is Literacy and Community Education Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAKAMAF, Trauma-Informed Care & Crisis Response (School-Based), with a secondary code of EDAJAKAE, Behavioral & Social-Emotional Support (ABA, PBIS, Counseling). Its NAICS code is 6241 and its SIC code is 8200.