SAN DIEGO (Border Report) — Mexico’s Consulate in San Diego and others like it across the country are encouraging college students to apply for a three-week educational immersion program in Mexico.

Anywhere from 70 to 100 students will be selected.

Students will visit Mexico City as well as other regions in Mexico this summer.

“This is a great opportunity for us to engage with the next generation at an age in which they are receptive, sensitive and sensible to a message of inclusion, message of tolerance and a message of multiculturalism,” said Carlos González Gutiérrez, Mexico’s Consul General in San Diego.

Mexico City’s Museum of Anthropology and Palacio de Bellas Artes. (Salvador Rivera/Border Report)
Carlos González Gutiérrez is Mexico’s Consul General in San Diego. (Courtesy: Mexican Consulate in San Diego)

González Gutiérrez says they are particularly interested in second- and third-generation students of Mexican descent who are 21-30 years old.

“We want those students to get closer to their homeland, the country of their origin … you can be loyal and a good citizen of the United States, at the same time feel proud of the culture that provided you with an identity.”

González Gutiérrez says the trip involves three primary goals: “One are educational activities, mostly focus on Mexican history. Two, they will have cultural immersion experiences like visiting museums, and thirdly, do volunteer work promoting social justice and environmental justice, and we want to encourage that in Mexico.”

Most of the costs related to the trip will be paid for by the Mexican government.

“We are paying for all expenses related to staying in Mexico such as hotels, transportation, meals, but the participants should cover their travel costs.”

The deadline to apply is April 21.

Those interested can send an email, expressing a willingness, to comunidaddessdi@sre.gob.mx or they can call (619) 308-9943.