A collaboration agreement was recently signed between the Río Piedras and Mayagüez campuses of the University of Puerto Rico (UPR) with Middlebury College, a U.S. institution of higher education recognized for its excellence and leadership in the areas of language teaching, environmental studies and international studies, among others.

With this alliance, its campuses in the states of Vermont and California and with schools in 16 countries throughout Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America, Middlebury College will now have its first collaborative university in the Caribbean.

"For our campus, it is an enormous privilege to enter into this agreement with an institution of the unquestionable category and projection of Middlebury College, an alliance that will definitely benefit both parties thanks to this exchange initiative that will make possible experiences of immense value, both for our students and for those who visit us," said Dr. Angélica Varela Llavona, rector of the UPR in Río Piedras. "I thank and warmly congratulate all the people who have made possible the materialization of this project, with the certainty that it will bear the expected fruits."

Through the Middlebury School in Puerto Rico, students from Middlebury College and other universities in the United States will be able to come to Puerto Rico to take classes directly at the UPR Mayagüez and Río Piedras campuses for a semester or a school year. In this way, they will have direct access to the broad academic curriculum offered by both campuses and will be able to take the courses together with their students.

Likewise, students coming to UPR will also be able to focus on areas of study dedicated to sustainability and eco-justice, Caribbean and Puerto Rican studies, intersectional feminist studies, and Afro-descendant studies, among others.

"This collaborative agreement allows us to expand our educational agenda by impacting students in the United States, both academically and in cultural and social knowledge of our island. Likewise, it opens a window of opportunities for our young people, who are also exposed to new experiences. Undoubtedly, this inter-university alliance is of mutual benefit and we are hopeful that it will be the beginning of a long collaboration with Middlebury College," said Dr. Agustín Rullán Toro, rector of the UPR Mayagüez campus.                                        

In addition, students from the Río Piedras and Mayagüez campuses will have the opportunity to apply for admission to various Middlebury programs, such as Middlebury C.V. Starr Schools Abroad, Middlebury Summer Language Schools, the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, California, as well as summer programs, including the Museum Studies program at the University of Oxford, England.

Middlebury College has selected Dr. Teresa Peña Jordán as Director and Associate Professor of the Middlebury School in Puerto Rico, a position she has held since July 1 of this year.

Dr. Peña Jordán has worked as director of the Women's and Gender Studies Program at UPR-Río Piedras and as an adjunct professor in the Schools of General Studies and Humanities, also at this campus. She completed her undergraduate studies at Carnegie Mellon University and obtained her master's degree and doctorate from the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  Dr. Peña Jordán will be in charge of the implementation of the academic agreements between the institutions and will serve as the primary contact for the Middlebury School in Puerto Rico.

For more information, please contact Dr. Peña Jordán via e-mail at the following address: [email protected].