About Us

Our Story

In January 2002, a decision weighed on Victor Silva (Sara’s husband): it was time to study for the GED high school equivalency exam, a goal deferred since dropping out of high school at 17. Victor enrolled in a GED Prep Class at Harbor Community Adult School and asked if he could meet the teacher before the official start of classes. When he walked into Room 6 and introduced himself to the teacher, her welcoming response was, “Hi, I’m Mrs. Hughes and I will be your teacher. I’m so happy you are here!” In that simple, heartfelt welcome, a decades-long relationship, a powerful partnership, and a shared mission grounded in profound respect, unwavering care, and deep compassion took root. Little did we, Sara and Kim, realize that Victor’s courageous step toward his own education would irrevocably change the trajectory of all our futures.

As teachers for Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), we saw an emerging pattern of struggle amongst our most vulnerable students. The conditions of poverty, trauma and violence prevented them from finding purpose in traditional education. While students wanted to do well, they faced multiple psycho-social barriers that made it nearly impossible to prioritize education. Our “aha” moment came at a conference listening to a presentation on alternative education options for at-risk young people. It was at that moment, we knew we needed to start a nonprofit that believes that with enough love and support, people can accomplish anything. EntreNous seeks to build on the unique strength, resiliency, and brilliance people possess.

It was with tremendous love and support from our personal networks, we were able to leave LAUSD to create our nonprofit, EntreNous Youth Empowerment Services (now EntreNous Community Empowerment) which at its core means “between us; in confidence”. We strive to build healthy, supportive relationships with participants, families, teachers, staff, partners, stakeholders and communities. We believe everyone is entitled to love, respect, care and compassion.

Thank you to everyone who has been, and who will be, a part of our journey. We look forward to building opportunities and relationships with the people and communities we serve.

Thank you to all who have been, and who will be, a part of our journey,

Kim Hughes & Sara Silva
Co-Founders

Our Core Values

Respect

Develop an understanding of one another by respecting each other’s beliefs, cultures, & spaces

Care

Provide a safe space that allows people to feel confident and cared for

Compassion

Implement a system of boundaries, high expectations, support, and consistency

We Believe

Our Mission

EntreNous delivers programs, resources and services to foster resilient and self-sustaining people.

Our Purpose

Our purpose is to offer an integrated human development approach to high-quality workforce and leadership development programs, education, resources, and services. Through the creation of an inclusive equitable and nurturing environment, we provide culturally relevant and rigorous instruction. The goal is to improve financial sustainability for people and families in economically-distressed communities.

8%

Recidivism vs 39.1% in CA

77%

Credential Attainment