Calasanz Comprehensive Care Center, Maracaibo: Educating for Inclusion.
Richard Nava. Coordinator, Itaka-Escolapios Foundation. Maracaibo, Venezuela.
At the heart of St. Joseph Calasanz’s educational vision lies a conviction that has endured for centuries: education is the most dignified, noble, and necessary means of transforming society. However, in the current context, especially in challenging realities such as Venezuela’s, we face harsh realities where specialized education for neurodivergent children and adolescents is not accessible to families of modest socioeconomic means.
In response to this need, the Calasanz Comprehensive Care Center (CAI) – Maracaibo Branch was established and has grown into a center for non-formal education and therapeutic support that today stands as a beacon of hope, inclusion, and social justice in the city of Maracaibo.
The CAI Calasanz is not simply a counseling center; it is the contemporary embodiment of the Calasanctian motto. Today, “Piety” manifests itself in compassionate support for families, and “Learning” finds expression through psychopedagogical tools that enable children to overcome barriers to learning.
Our goals are clear and ambitious. We seek to ensure true educational inclusion. It is not enough for a child to simply be seated at a desk; they must have the therapeutic tools to process information, especially those facing learning challenges or with special needs.
But CAI goes beyond the classroom. We understand that children are part of an ecosystem, which is why Family Counseling is a fundamental pillar of our work. We support parents and guardians through the complex process of understanding a diagnosis and transforming initial anxiety into an effective, loving parenting strategy. All of this takes place within a framework of Accessibility and Social Justice, offering professional services at affordable rates that ensure the most vulnerable sectors of Maracaibo are not excluded from the right to mental health and cognitive development.
The origins of the CAI in Maracaibo are what we like to call “the context of the miracle.” Venezuela has undergone an unprecedented socioeconomic crisis that has hit children’s emotional stability and development particularly hard. Conditions such as ADHD, autism spectrum disorders (ASD), or developmental delays became “sentences” of school dropout for many families who, unable to afford private services, watched their children fall behind.
Inspired by the mission of Itaka-Escolapios to serve the poorest and most vulnerable, the Piarist presence in Maracaibo decided that we could not remain silent witnesses to this reality. What began as an emergency service and one-time assistance has evolved—thanks to the support of the Order and the Fraternity—into an institutionalized program with a robust pedagogical and clinical structure. We have moved from “welfare” to “capacity building,” creating a management model that ensures professional quality within a faith-based environment.
What makes CAI Calasanz a unique experience? Its methodology of Personalized Accompaniment. In our spaces, every beneficiary is a sacred story.
The process does not end with the diagnosis. The CAI therapeutic team establishes a direct bridge with schools. We do not evaluate the child in isolation; we communicate with their teachers so that the goals of therapy are reflected in classroom performance. This synergy is vital for inclusion to be effective and not merely nominal.
We currently have a team of specialists in Educational Psychology, ABA Therapy, and Speech Therapy, and, under the 2025-2026 Executive Plan, we are taking firm steps toward administrative optimization. The digitization of processes and the unification of identity criteria with the Itaka Escolapios Headquarters Coordination are not merely technical tasks; they are acts of institutional responsibility to ensure that the CAI is sustainable and can expand its reach. We want the CAI to be the embodiment of “full-time Pious Schools,” where service never stops.
Currently, the center serves 28 children, ranging in age from 6 years old to adults; however, the CAI’s impact is not measured solely by service statistics but by the restoration of joy. When a mother tells us, “Here we learned that his way of learning is different, not wrong,” we understand that we have fulfilled our mission. That shift in perspective is what saves lives and rebuilds futures.
For many children, the CAI has been the bridge to smiling again at school. By being seen and valued for their uniqueness rather than their limitations, the beneficiaries develop self-esteem, the foundation of future academic success. Institutionally, the center has demonstrated that it is possible to provide care with a deeply human and social approach.
The Calasanz Comprehensive Care Center in Maracaibo is a living testament to the fact that the Piarist charism is more relevant than ever. In a world that often marginalizes those who process reality differently, we choose the path of acceptance and specialization. Caring for the holistic development of our children means ensuring that the seed of education falls on fertile ground. The CAI is, in short, our way of saying that, at the Pious Schools of Maracaibo, no one is left behind. Let us continue to spread our roots so that all our children can bear their best fruit.
