Abril Vela

Philanthropy Program Manager
Pronouns: She/her

Abril Vela is AI4ALL’s Philanthropy Program Manager, where she supports fundraising activities and manages the DEFINE: Our AI Futures Initiative. She is also Co-Founder and CEO of CS for Success, a Chicago-based consultancy that enables students to participate in equitable, inclusive, high-quality computer science experiences. She graduated from the University of Michigan in 2018 with a Bachelor of Science in Information Science and has spent her career as a social entrepreneur and community organizer, promoting equity and inclusion in tech.

As a strategic leader, Abril has deep experience in aligning stakeholders across academia, government, industry, and nonprofit sectors. She partners with clients to position mission-driven organizations for long-term impact. Her contributions include developing and launching new workforce development programs and research initiatives that address critical gaps in computing education. These projects include Computer Science for Every Learner, a professional development initiative for teachers of English Learners, and High-Tech CHI, a citywide initiative, in partnership with the Chicago Department of Family & Support Services, to bring computer science experiences to learners of all ages across Chicago.

Previously, Abril served as Special Projects Coordinator for the Office of Computer Science at Chicago Public Schools and as Project Manager at AnitaB.org.