After a year of establishing relations and forming agreements with several Mexican universities, the exchange of faculty and students between institutions is taking place by Western New Mexico University.
More than a dozen Mexican students who attend the Universidad de Occidente in different Mexican states are enrolled in a week of intensive English courses on the WNMU campus in Silver City.
WNMU has become a desired place for students throughout Mexico who are looking for an international experience that feels close to home.
“The Silver City community has been so welcoming to our Mexican students,” said Manual Rodriguez, WNMU Language Institute Director. “Some students return, and many new students choose us for their English language studies because of the positive word of the mouth.”
Earlier this summer, Adrian Barbosa, 29, of the Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon (UANL), spent a week at the WNMU campus, a result of an exchange agreement between the two institutions. Barbosa is a candidate for the Ph.D. in Physical Education Science at UANL.
“I came here to work on my thesis and to utilize the great resources,” said Barbosa. “We are trying to figure out if a gender invariance exists with professional athletes.”
Barbosa is part of a group of students that is researching the interpersonal styles of coaches and how they affect psychological processes of athletes. Barbosa’s team sampled a group of 1400 Mexican athletes between the ages of 17 and 28 years old.
“My experience at WNMU has been great, getting to know a new university and a different kind of work flow,” said Barbosa who was guided by WNMU professors Dr. Takahiro Sato and Dr. Miguel Narvaez during his experience.
In February, the two professors participated in an international advisory board meeting in Mexico to discuss sports science curriculum, an outcome from a collaboration agreement with UANL. Board members included scholars from Mexico, Venezuela, Chile, and the United States.
The Division of External Affairs is preparing for upcoming opportunities of exchange by professors and students in the coming semester.