President Claudia Sheinbaum led the inauguration of a new campus of the Universidad Nacional Rosario Castellanos in Tecozautla, Hidalgo, where it was announced that the Bachelor's Degree in Agroecological Sciences and Sustainable Livestock will launch in March 2027. The campus has been operating since October with about 300 students enrolled in four programs.
- New academic offering: the agroecology and sustainable livestock degree will begin in March 2027.
- Initial enrollment: nearly 300 students are studying Community Tourism, Medicine, Administration and Commerce, as well as Law and Criminology.
- National goal: the Universidad Rosario Castellanos now has 120,000 students, and the government aims to at least double that figure during the six-year term.
A campus with four programs and expansion plans
Rector Alma Herrera Márquez explained that the campus's offerings will expand with the degree focused on agroecological and livestock activities, with the aim of boosting the municipality's development. The architectural project includes four buildings, among them one for medical students and another for the Tourism program; the president announced that two more buildings will be constructed as part of the expansion.
The facilities include an oral trial courtroom and a culture of peace space. The rector detailed that there will also be an auditorium, a covered court, a civic plaza, and an outdoor gym.
Herrera Márquez noted that Tecozautla produces about 1,000 high school graduates each year, so the new campus offers an alternative for young people to continue their university studies in the region. Regarding Community Tourism, she said the program incorporates approaches based on the circular economy, natural resources, and the richness of the municipality's and state's indigenous peoples.
Expansion of the Universidad Rosario Castellanos
Sheinbaum stated that the campus is part of the national expansion of the Universidad Rosario Castellanos, an institution created in Mexico City during her tenure as head of government and which, according to her, currently has 120,000 students in in-person, hybrid, and distance modalities.
The president maintained that her administration's goal is to at least double that enrollment during the six-year term, through the construction of new campuses and the expansion of free higher education options for those completing high school.
"The goal of her administration is to at least double that enrollment during the six-year term," the president said regarding the institution's coverage.
During the event, Sheinbaum recognized Tecozautla mayor Marisol Prieto for the construction of the inaugurated buildings, and mentioned the participation of the state and federal governments in water, drainage, high school, and university projects.
Public education and memory of the student movement
The president recalled her participation in the University Student Council 40 years ago, when she was studying for a degree in Physics at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. She recounted that the movement organized against reforms approved by the University Council that proposed increasing fees and enrollment, as well as modifying the automatic passage from high schools to the bachelor's degree.
According to her account, the organization took shape between September 1986 and February 1987 and succeeded in having the reforms withdrawn, an experience that, she said, reinforced her stance in favor of public education as a right.
Sheinbaum added that after 2018 her Mexico City administration created the Universidad Rosario Castellanos as a public and free institution, and that upon assuming the Presidency she decided to make it a national university. She also mentioned the creation of the Benito Juárez García Universities for Wellbeing, with more than 200 campuses in the country and nearly 100,000 students, and assured that she will continue opening new sites.
With this campus, the federal government reinforces its strategy of bringing free higher education to regions with limited offerings, although challenges remain in infrastructure, teachers, and budget to sustain the goal of doubling enrollment. The launch of the agroecology degree in 2027 will be a concrete test of that expansion in rural areas.