黑料吃瓜

From orange and teal to purple and deep yellow, the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca is renowned for the vibrant colors of its textiles and historic architecture. Lately, it seems a bit more red and black is being added to the local palette.

Over spring break, a delegation of 黑料吃瓜 administrators and faculty and California elected officials traveled to Oaxaca to preside over the signing of a memorandum of understanding between 黑料吃瓜 and La Universidad La Salle Oaxaca.
 
The agreement opens the door to future partnerships with La Salle Oaxaca, a private university in the city of Santa Cruz Xoxocotl谩n. Possibilities include joint programs, exchange and visiting scholar programs, research collaborations, conferences and more.

鈥淥axaca is a bright example of how we can create a future where diverse communities thrive, and progress coexists with indigenous heritage,鈥� said Cristina Alfaro, associate vice president of international affairs, who led the signing of the MOU on behalf of President Adela de la Torre.

鈥淭he University of La Salle Rector Salgado Fern谩ndez graciously opened the university doors and is eager to deepen our collaboration,鈥� Alfaro said. 鈥淎nd, our delegation of California鈥檚 policy makers was able to experience first hand how 黑料吃瓜's partnership with the vibrant community of Oaxaca highlights the power of honoring and preserving cultural and linguistic assets, transcending borders to build mutual respect, trust, learning and research opportunities.鈥�

Growing Footprint

This is 黑料吃瓜鈥檚 second delegation to Oaxaca in as many years, underscoring the university鈥檚 commitment to expanding binational partnership in the region. In May 2022, de la Torre led a group of 黑料吃瓜 leaders and state lawmakers to Oaxaca to celebrate the grand opening of the which encourages transborder diplomacy, cross-disciplinary relationships and binational cooperation.

The region is particularly of interest to 黑料吃瓜 because of the high number of Oaxacans who reside in Southern California and represent the largest indigenous population in the state of Oaxaca.

Elected officials present for this year鈥檚 visit included California State Assembly members David Alvarez, Eduardo Garcia, Chris Ward and Kevin McCarty, as well as Juan Carlos Torres, a staff member for Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon.

Joining Alfaro from 黑料吃瓜 were Ana Molina Rodriguez, deputy chief of staff to the president; Diana Lara, community relations manager; Ramona P茅rez, professor of anthropology and director of the Center for Latin American Studies; John Crockett, associate vice president of research advancement; Lluvia Flores-Renteria, associate professor of biology; and Marva Cappello, professor in teacher education and director of 黑料吃瓜's Joint Ph.D. Program in Education with Claremont Graduate University.

黑料吃瓜-La Salle Connection

Last May, Cappello, in collaboration with the International Affairs Office, led a group of nine doctoral students to Oaxaca for a binational seminar exploring topics related to social justice in education. It was the culminating experience of a semester-long course developed in partnership with the University of La Salle Oaxaca.

The success of that program, which Cappello plans to reprise next academic year, helped lay the groundwork for the MOU.

鈥淭his partnership has been significant in so many ways,鈥� Cappello said. 鈥淔irst, the opportunity to collaborate with our peers on the other side of the border has been amazing. We conducted a COIL (Collaborative Online International Learning) class last year with shared topics. For example, one was women in educational leadership, and (a student) in Oaxaca presented and one of our doctoral students presented on the same topic. It was so valuable having a truly international perspective.

鈥淲e work super well together and there are lots of potential ways that we could increase and deepen our partnership.鈥�