Outstanding Youth in Philanthropy

Caroly Coronado-Vargas

Nominated by Al Exito 

For more than seven years, Caroly Coronado-Vargas has been active with Al Éxito – a statewide organization that provides programming for Latinx youth. Its goals are to provide college preparation, career development, civic engagement, family support, and cultural appreciation programming that builds leadership potential. One of Al Éxito’s top sources of income is |drēm|sēd|, a youth entrepreneurial organization led by a talented young CEO: Coronado-Vargas. 

The students involved in |drēm|sēd| meet every Saturday morning under Coronado-Vargas’ leadership. They have crafted a mission, vision, and product – which has been sold in Korea, Germany, Israel, and across the U.S. Thanks to Coronado-Vargas’ efforts, |drēm|sēd| is cultivating the next generation of Iowa Latinx entrepreneurs and building a knowledgeable, socially responsible future workforce in Central Iowa.

Currently a student at Iowa State, Coronado-Vargas has been active in a number of extracurricular activities and community service initiatives. Those include National Honor Society, National Council on Youth Leadership, Link Crew/Scarlet Squad, track and field, orchestra, speech, and Upward Bound. She has served as vice president of Latinos in Action, as a speaker for the National Brown and Black Presidential Forum, and as a workshop presenter at the National Free Minds Free People Conference. In 2018, she organized the Des Moines Public Schools Youth School Board Candidate Forum. She has also volunteered as a Spanish language interpreter and traveled to Washington, D.C., as a student representative for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) legislation.