Karen De Ávila: Bringing Digital Skills to Rural Communities to Broaden Young People’s Horizons in Córdoba

A Calling Born from an Opportunity

Karen was born in Cartagena, but has lived in Montería since she was ten years old. She completed her studies there and later earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science and Audiovisual Media from the University of Córdoba. She subsequently complemented her education with a specialization in Educational Planning and Development Plans. Although she initially dreamed of studying Social Communication, she soon discovered that teaching was also a way of communicating, inspiring and transforming lives.

“I realized that sharing knowledge while, at the same time, learning from other people was what I really wanted to do. From then on, I decided to devote my professional life to education,”she recalls.

Her experience as a manager and coordinator of educational projects strengthened this conviction and allowed her to develop tools to support training processes through a pedagogical and human-centred approach.

When Technology Reaches Places It Had Never Reached Before

Karen joined SENATIC in 2024 after learning about an open call shared by a friend. In addition to working as an instructor, she is part of the support team responsible for verifying and monitoring the project’s portfolios, a role that contributes to strengthening the initiative’s academic quality.

After working with urban educational institutions in Montería, she took on a new challenge: supporting training processes in rural communities across Córdoba.

She currently works with four groups of students at institutions located in Pueblo Bujo, Santa Fe, Los Aguacates, in the municipality of Cotorra, and Paulo VI, in Lorica. There are nearly 70 learners with very different backgrounds, but they are united by their desire to make the most of an opportunity that, for many, had never before been available in their communities.

“The students welcome SENATIC with great enthusiasm because the project has reached places where very few training initiatives had been present before,”she explains.

More Than Learning Technology

Every training session confirms for Karen that digital skills represent much more than technical knowledge.

In the classroom, she sees how many students begin to imagine a different future.

Many express their desire to attend a public university and study Systems Engineering or other technology-related fields—goals that once seemed out of reach.

“I have seen how this experience awakens in many young people the desire to continue studying. SENATIC broadens their vision of the future and allows them to discover professional possibilities they had never considered before,”she says.

For her, this transformation is one of the programme’s greatest achievements. “More than teaching digital tools, I feel that we are helping to open a window onto new life plans.”

Educating Also Transforms Those Who Teach

Karen recognizes that working with young people from rural areas has also transformed the way she understands education.

ach group reminds her that teaching involves listening, understanding different realities and supporting personal journeys as well as academic ones.

“Seeing the students’ desire to improve themselves, their effort and the enthusiasm with which they embrace this process is deeply inspiring,” says.

This experience also influences her family life. Together with her husband, who is also a university lecturer, she strives to ensure that their two children grow up understanding that technology can be a tool for learning, research and developing critical thinking, always accompanied by values and a comprehensive education.

Building Opportunities Through Education

When she thinks about the future, Karen hopes that initiatives such as SENATIC will continue reaching more rural communities across the country.

She is convinced that education and access to digital skills do more than prepare young people for employment; they also strengthen their confidence, broaden their aspirations and help build communities with greater opportunities.

“I believe that SENATIC not only provides technical learning; it also strengthens empathy, social commitment and the conviction that education can transform lives,”, concludes.

Her story reflects how an educational opportunity can change the course of a person’s life and how, through digital skills training, it is possible to open new doors so that more young people can build life plans with better prospects for education, employment and development in their own communities.