ABout us
Our Mission
iASO Cultural Foundation empowers under-served Caribbean youth to grow as artists, community leaders, and ambassadors of their musical heritage. From our academies in Cabarete, Dominican Republic, and Cap-Haïtien, Haiti, we provide more than 650 children each year with free, intensive instruction in bachata, merengue, konpa, and other traditional genres.
A Commitment to the Long Term
Caribbean music is celebrated worldwide but rarely taught in the schools of the communities that created it. We are working to change that — designing tailored curricula and preparing a new generation of teachers specialized in the music of their communities. Through scholarships and teacher training, our most talented students come full circle, returning to the classroom as mentors for the next generation.
Our Structure
iASO Cultural Foundation is a New York–based 501(c)(3) public charity and the primary grantee and strategic partner for Academia de Bachata in the Dominican Republic and Konpa Akademi in Haiti. Our New York board provides governance, fundraising leadership, and financial oversight, working closely with our Caribbean affiliates and reviewing detailed financial and operational reports to ensure that donor contributions are deployed with rigor, transparency, and lasting impact.
Programmatic execution is locally led — the people closest to the students and the music are the ones running the academies. Our leadership team includes President Benjamin de Menil, Academia de Bachata Operational Coordinator Jildania Sánchez, CFO Alla Korotyaeva, and Konpa Akademi Director Emmanuel Civil.