Abel Núñez joined CARECEN as its Executive Director in March 2013. Mr. Nunez has a well-rounded background in nonprofit management and fundraising, as well as a history of community activism. Prior to CARECEN, he was Associate Director of Centro Romero in Chicago, IL, and was primarily responsible for the day to day operations, fiscal management, program administration, and communications.

Mr. Núñez migrated from El Salvador to the United States with his family in 1979 and grew up in the District of Columbia.  Mr. Núñez has a Bachelor’s of Business Administration from Hofstra University. Before he moved to Chicago, he worked in D.C. for the Latino Civil Rights Center. From 1998 to 2000, he was also on the staff of CARECEN serving first as its Citizenship and Civic Participation Project Coordinator and later as its Deputy Director.

Mr. Núñez’ volunteerism reflects his lifelong pursuit of justice and empowerment for immigrants in the U.S. He served as Co-President of Organization of the Northeast (ONE), a nonprofit agency that aims to build a successful multi-ethnic, mixed-economic community on Chicago’s northeast side. He also served as Community Co-Chair of the Alliance for Research in Chicago Communities, a project of Northwestern University that supports community-based participatory research. He worked tirelessly with city and state coalitions to pass the Illinois Dream Act.

Nationally, Mr. Núñez has served since 2008 on the Board of the Salvadoran American National Network (SANN). Through the Immigration Task Force for Central Americans, he is one of the founding members of the Residency Now campaign which was launched in January 2012. He also co-founded the DC-MD-VA Coalition in Support of Children Fleeing Violence which responded to the incoming wave of unaccompanied children in the summer of 2013. He also serves on the Community Advisory Board of Georgetown-Howard Universities Center for Clinical and Translational Science (GHUCCTS).  The GHUCCTS program is committed to transforming research to accelerate improvements in the health of diverse and underserved populations, including minorities, the elderly, and those with disabilities.