SOU and Mexican sister institution establish new agreement

(Ashland, Ore.) - The leaders of Southern Oregon University and its Mexican sister institution, the Universidad de Guanajuato, officially renewed the schools' 55-year relationship on Wednesday by pledging in a new memorandum of understanding to "strengthen institutional collaboration in the areas of teaching, research and extension."

The new agreement - which builds upon a commitment the two universities made to each other during their 50^th anniversary celebration in 2019 - was reached as a delegation from SOU visited Guanajuato this week. The memorandum was signed by SOU President Rick Bailey and UG Rector General Claudia Susana Gómez López, whose position is equivalent to that of the president at a U.S. university.

"All of us at Southern Oregon University are grateful to President Claudia Susana Gómez López and her wonderful team at the University of Guanajuato for celebrating and continuing this beautiful 55-year partnership," President Bailey said. "We look forward to even more opportunities for our students, faculty and staff to collaborate in a spirit of friendship, partnership and love."

More than 1,000 students, faculty members and others have participated in a variety of exchange programs between the two universities and the cities of Ashland and Guanajuato, which are sister cities.

The cooperative link between the two cities and the two universities is unique. Guanajuato is closer in size to Eugene than to Ashland, and Universidad de Guanajuato - which is larger than any university in Oregon - has sister university relationships with more than 300 other institutions worldwide. But the Ashland-Guanajuato relationships - between both the cities and universities - were the first for each entity.

Some families from the Mexican city have been involved in the relationships with Ashland and SOU for three generations, and more than 80 marriages have united partners from Ashland and Guanajuato.

The new memorandum of understanding commits the two universities to maintain a close working relationship:

"Universidad de Guanajuato and Southern Oregon University express their intention to strengthen institutional collaboration in the areas of teaching, research and extension, through activities or projects that will be formalized by specific agreements, within the framework of the attributions conferred by their regulations."

Contingents of academic and administrative leaders of the two universities regularly visit the other's campus, and collaborative programs benefit the students of each. One current example is the Global Innovation Scholars program - a collaboration on multicultural business development that grew out of an initiative from the U.S. Department of State. The program, which began in 2022, includes online coursework for participating students from the two schools during each year's winter and spring terms, and a visit to each other's communities to assess and create development plans for local businesses or organizations.

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