Meet Xiomara: One of the Young Women of Rosario’s Initiative
For Xiomara Martínez Parra, education has meant balancing work, family, and university—and continuing to look toward what comes next.
Xiomara, 32, is from Salcedo, Dominican Republic. She studied Accounting at the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo (UASD), completing her degree while navigating responsibilities that extended far beyond the classroom.
“One of the most difficult challenges has been having to work while studying,” she says.
Her university years also coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic. At another point in her studies, while pregnant, she was completing her final courses and carrying out a research project at a cooperative in Salcedo.
Throughout that journey, Xiomara says her family—and particularly her mother—shaped the way she understood education.
“Above all, she taught us the importance of education, which is the foundation of everything.”
Support at an important moment
Xiomara is one of the young women supported through Rosario’s Initiative, a collaboration between the Juan Pablo Duarte Foundation and Ambassador Julissa Reynoso Pantaleón.
Launched in Salcedo in 2025, the initiative works to expand access to higher education for young women in the community.
For Xiomara, the scholarship arrived as she was approaching the final stage of her university education, helping her cover expenses associated with her monographic project, thesis, and graduation.
“It was truly a great help at the right moment,” she says.
She describes receiving the scholarship as “a great blessing for me and my family,” particularly because it helped with costs connected to completing her studies.
Looking ahead
Graduation is not where Xiomara imagines her education ending.
“My dream is to continue my education by pursuing a Master’s Degree in Auditing.”
That sense of possibility is part of what Rosario’s Initiative hopes to make more accessible. Since its launch, the initiative has supported more than 20 young women with university scholarships. Its reach in Salcedo extends further through support for the maintenance of school buses used to transport hundreds of students in the community.
Those numbers matter. But each represents an individual story.
Xiomara’s is one of them.
And when asked what she would tell another young woman with a dream of her own, her answer is simple:
“Never stop believing in yourself, because dreams really can come true.”
Rosario’s Initiative is a collaboration between the Juan Pablo Duarte Foundation and Ambassador Julissa Reynoso Pantaleón, supporting greater access to higher education for young women in Salcedo, Dominican Republic.
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