"Over the next three decades, the number of third-generation Latinos will triple, and the number of second-generation Latinos will double. Latino youth are shaping every facet of life in the United States. Iskali is at the forefront of training the transformative leaders we need in church and society.”
Timothy Matovina, PhD, Professor and Chair of the Department of Theology, University of Notre Dame.

Addressing a need

"Younger Latinos are are less likely to be Catholic. Younger Catholics are more likely to be Latino."
- Pew Research

Two-thirds of Catholics under the age of 35 who attend Mass are Latino

66%

However, second and third generation Latino immigrants are leaving the Church at increasing rates. Only 47% of Latinos in the United States identify as Catholic, down 10% in just a decade. 

47%

49% of young Latinos leave the Catholic Church in the United States because of lack of community.

49%

Only 22% of Latino adults graduate with an associate degree or higher.

22%

"Hispanic young people are the present and the future of the Catholic Church in the United States of America as well as of countless cities and neighborhoods. Investing in them now is investing in our future as a nation. Iskali is an initiative that believes in the potential of young Hispanics and provides spaces for them to grow as human beings, as Christian disciples and as citizens in an increasingly diverse society. I am pleased to know about the success of Iskali, which models creative ministry with Hispanic Catholic youth. I look forward to seeing its outreach to expand in Chicago and in other parts of the country."

Hosffman Ospino, PhD, Associate Professor of Theology and Religious Education, Boston College.

APPROACH

Iskali believes in young people, and the power of faith and community to help individuals reach their full potential

“I was so blind by everything negative around me that I did not know I had something missing in my life. I obviously did and I’m really happy that I ended up finding it.”
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-Dayana Huerta 
Iskali Young Adult leader

“We must restore hope to young people, help the old, be open to the future, spread love. Be poor among the poor. We need to include the excluded and preach peace."
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-Pope Francis