The training and social practice of graduates of the “Enrique Rodríguez Cano” Rural Teachers’ College in Misantla-Perote, Veracruz, 1952-1969

Abstract

This paper analyzes the social participation of teachers educated at the “Enrique Rodríguez Cano” Rural Teachers’ College, which existed in Veracruz between 1952 and 1969 and was later closed down because of a government decree.

The young people who studied there were of rural origin, and mostly of low income. Their training revolved around a social commitment to transform marginalized communities in Mexico in the 20th century, involving group organization, management and community work, as well as a strong socialist ideology resulting from the demands of the Mexican Revolution of 1910.

In 1935, the students of Rural Teachers’ Colleges formed their own organization, the Socialist Peasant Student Federation, which led to the creation of committees of political and ideological organization with the purpose of raising awareness among young people about their social reality and helping to ensure the welfare of the communities where they worked. Thanks to this ideology, graduates after 1956 were socially committed teachers and, even after retiring, have continued to be involved in various actions as agents of social change.