Escuela Nacional Preparatoria

Escuela Nacional Preparatoria
ENP

Seal of UNAM's Escuela Nacional Preparatoria
Type English Premie feos
Established 1868
President Silvia E. Jurado Cuéllar
Students 50,313[1] (2007)
Location Mexico City,  Mexico
Colors Blue & Gold         
Website dgenp.unam.mx

The Escuela Nacional Preparatoria (English: National Preparatory High School) (ENP), the oldest senior High School system in Mexico, belonging to the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), opened its doors on February 1, 1868. It was founded by Gabino Barreda, M.D., following orders of then President of Mexico Benito Juárez. It is also modern UNAM's oldest institution.

This institution's location was the Antiguo Colegio de San Ildefonso (English: San Ildefonso College), which is located in the heart of Mexico City's historic center. This college was founded in 1588 by the Jesuits and was prestigious during colonial times, but it had almost completely fallen into ruin by the time of the Reform Laws in the 1860s. These Laws secularized most of Church property, including the San Ildefonso College building[2] In 1867, Benito Juárez began reform of the educational system, taking it out of clerical hands and making it a government function. San Ildefonso was converted into the Escuela Nacional Preparatoria initially directed by Gabino Barreda, who organized the new school on the Positivist model of Auguste Comte (Comtism).[2][3] The initial purpose of the school was to provide the nucleus of students for the soon-to-be-reconstructed Universidad Nacional (National University), later National Autonomous University of Mexico,[4] which was re-established in 1910 by Justo Sierra.[2]

The new preparatory school began functioning at the San Ildefonso building with more than 700 day students and 200 live-in students.[3] The complex remained a separate entity until 1929, when the Universidad Nacional gained autonomy, meaning it became independent of the government, though still government-sponsored. The Preparatory School became part of the newly independent university system, being designated as Preparatory #1 for a short time.[4][5]

Following this, because of the increasing demand, nine more schools were built, as well as a new organizational organism called General Direction. These schools were located at the center of Mexico City, but due the increasing size of the city and the necessity for modern buildings, they were relocated in the vicinity of the city, mainly orientated in the southern neighborhoods like Coyoacán, Xochimilco and Villa Coapa.

The original San Ildefonso College location remained open until 1978, when it closed completely. It is now a museum and cultural museum.[2][4]

Orchestra

In 1972, the School's orchestra was founded by Uberto Zanolli.

Its present director is Luis Samuel Saloma, who made a tour along the 9 schools of the ENP, giving a final concert at the Auditorium at the General Direction.

Frida Kahlo was one of their many students. She attended the school in 1922.

Student exchange

The school runs academic exchanges with different foreign institutions, they are run on a yearly basis.

The Horizon High School in Broomfield, Colorado, United States, has a 10-day exchange plan for 9 students and 2 teachers at School number 3.

City High School at Oklahoma has an exchange of 15 days with School number 9.

Schools

Although the schools all have a name and a number, they are commonly referred to by their numbers rather than by their names.

Preparatoria 7
SchoolLocation
Preparatoria 1 Gabino BarredaXochimilco
Preparatoria 2 Erasmo Castellanos QuintoIztacalco
Preparatoria 3 Justo SierraGustavo A. Madero
Preparatoria 4 Vidal Castañeda y NájeraMiguel Hidalgo
Preparatoria 5 José VasconcelosTlalpan
Preparatoria 6 Antonio CasoCoyoacán
Preparatoria 7 Ezequiel A. ChávezVenustiano Carranza
Preparatoria 8 Miguel E. SchulzAlvaro Obregón
Preparatoria 9 Pedro de AlbaGustavo A. Madero

Curriculum

The school has mainly 2 kinds of study plan:

Student protest movement at Preparatoria 5 and 6 of 2005

In 2005 there was a movement of student unrest in response to the perception that criminal groups known as "porros" had been allowed to operate inside the Preparatorias. The students joined with the parents association in the movement. The schools involved were Preparatoria 5 José Vasconcelos, Preparatoria 6 Antonio Caso, and Colegio de Ciencias y Humanidades Azcapotzalco.

The main conflict started after an attack on a student (Diego Contreras) on November 10, 2005 at Preparatoria 6. Activists decided to occupy the high schools, in order to demand the expulsion of corrupt authorities and several criminals that actually were enrolled as students in these schools. The high schools remained occupied by the activist groups for several weeks.

In Preparatoria 6 the parents' association together with teachers confronted the authorities about the lack of action to exclude these criminal groups. They voted no confidence in the school's principal Apolonio García Sanchez. It was also in this high school that the first meeting took place with the director of Escuela Nacional Preparatoria Héctor Herrera. Students asked him for more security in the outskirts of the establishment and for the restitution of expelled activists.

Students from Preparatoria 5 demanded that the authorities of Escuela Nacional Preparatoria sign certain petitions, among them, a major control of the establishment's accesses, the resignation of several employees who were thought to support the "porros", and the expulsion of those people who struck and assaulted young students.

The academic activities continued in both establishments with the access controlled by students and elements of Auxilio UNAM (security bodies inside the institution), to avoid the entrance of "porros" so they couldn’t incur on provocations. The students announced that they would make meetings and informative brigades to present the reasons for which they maintain the protest.

After a long process of negotiations between students and authorities, they reached several agreements: On one hand, at Preparatoria 6 authorities granted the destitution of Apolonio García Sánchez, as well as the hiring of new security elements to bring more safety, and the creation of a local security council, that would make sure the fulfillment of the agreements.

On the other hand, with regards to the agreements reached in Preparatoria 5, the authorities of Escuela Nacional Preparatoria (ENP) decided the destitution of the private secretary of the director, the head of the legal office, the secretary of support to the community and the academic secretary of the vespertine turn. In addition the performance of the prefects of the establishment would be reviewed and the monitoring of the school will be reinforced. On November 22 of 2005, in a general assembly ruled by students the agreements were signed, at the same time as the high schools’ offices were given to their respective authorities

Former general directors

References

  1. ↑ Agenda Estadística 2007 DGPL-UNAM
  2. 1 2 3 4 Horz de Via (ed), Elena (1991). Guia Oficial Centro de la Ciudad d Mexico. Mexico City: INAH-SALVAT. pp. 46–50. ISBN 968-32-0540-2.
  3. 1 2 Galindo, Carmen; Magdelena Galindo (2002). Mexico City Historic Center. Mexico City: Ediciones Nueva Guia. pp. 86–91. ISBN 968-5437-29-7.
  4. 1 2 3 "San Ildefonso en el tiempo". Retrieved 2009-04-24.
  5. ↑ Bueno de Ariztegui (ed), Patricia (1984). Guia Turistica de Mexico Distrito Federal Centro 3. Mexico City: Promexa. pp. 80–84. ISBN 968-34-0319-0.

Bibliography

Coordinates: 19°23′25″N 99°10′04″W / 19.39028°N 99.16778°W / 19.39028; -99.16778

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