UIC, Mexico City formalize academic, cultural partnership

Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas Solórzano, right, Mexico City secretary of foreign affairs, and Michael Redding, UIC executive associate chancellor for public and government affairs, sign an agreement for cultural and academic collaboration. Photo: Roberta Dupuis-Devlin/UIC Photo Services

UIC and Mexico City have signed an agreement for a new academic and cultural partnership that could include faculty and student exchanges, research and education.

“This opens a very wide possibility for fruitful collaboration,” said Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas Solórzano, Mexico City secretary of foreign affairs.

The agreement, which formally established the five-year partnership, was signed by Cárdenas and Michael Redding, executive associate chancellor for public and government affairs.

Cárdenas is former head of Government of the Federal District (Mexico City) and a founder of the Party of the Democratic Revolution. He was accompanied by representatives from Mexico City USA, a trade, tourism and cultural promotion initiative to connect Los Angeles and Chicago with Mexico City.

More than 25 people gathered at University Hall June 26 for the signing, hosted by the UIC Office of International Affairs. UIC faculty and staff described research, exchanges and cultural programs that could benefit from the new agreement. Also highlighted was UIC’s status as a Hispanic-serving institution and its efforts aiding Latino students’ access to higher education.

The UIC group included representatives of the Latin American and Latino studies program, Latin American Recruitment and Educational Services, the Inter-University Program for Latino Research, Great Cities Initiative, College of Medicine and Academic and Enrollment Services.

Cárdenas’ visit to UIC was part of a trip to make connections in business, tourism, health and education in Chicago and Los Angeles. While in town he met with business and government officials, including Mayor Rahm Emanuel.