Escuelas de Esperanza was a project conducted in partnership with the Republic of Panama, at the request of then-First Lady of Panama. This project extended our commitment to education beyond our American borders, to build schools in underserved rural areas of other nations.

In rural Panama, more than 25,000 children attend “escuelas de ranchos,” rudimentary schools functioning in improvised huts with dirt floors and poor physical conditions.

The Honorable Vivian Fernández de Torrijos, then-First Lady of the Republic of Panama, shared the vision of Reverend Luis Cortés, Jr. for developing high-quality educational opportunities for her country's young people. The Panamanian Department of Education and then-Minister of Tourism of Panama, Rubén Blades, helped spearhead the Escuelas de Esperanza project in partnership with Reverend Cortés.

Reverend Cortés garnered the support of Yankees pitcher Mariano Rivera, artists and producers Gloria and Emilio Estefan, and award-winning Hispanic gospel artist Marcos Witt. Together, they supported and managed construction for 7 school buildings that were completed in the year 2008.