The Fifth Generation of Colorado State University students visited the Autonomous University of Yucatan from November 20th to 26th as part of an ongoing student exchange program. The CSU students participated in cultural activities including visits to archaeological sites, rural communities, and time with their host families. They also learned about UADY student projects and programs and gave a presentation about campus life at CSU. The visit concluded with goodbyes at a closing dinner, with the hope that collaboration between the universities will continue in the future.

1. Fifth CSU visit to UADY
November 2013
Within the Student Leadership Exchange Program between the Autonomous University of Yucatan
(UADY by its acronym in Spanish) and Colorado State University (CSU) from November 20 to the
26th the visit of the Fifth CSU Generation took place in our university; the group included students
JielaPeyman, David Gardner, AddyRastall, Katie Aker, Diana Delacruz, Austin Wand, Jackie
Burciaga, Phil Mayhofferand Claudia Hernandez, alongside student coordinator Matthew Donovan
and the respective authorities Pamela Norris and Bobby Kunstman.
Thevisitwasplanned and organizedby Dr. Andrés Aluja Schunnemanand thestudentcoordinator at
UADY, Yenni Maricruz Díaz Herklotz,alongsidemembers of theFourthGeneration: Andrés Antonio
Campos Castillo, Ángel Leonel Sansores Paredes, Benjamín Martínez Hernández, Braulio Emilio
GüémezGraniel, Erika Margarita Uicab Campos, Luis Mauricio Montes de Oca Mena, Ricardo Díaz
Quijano, Ricardo Raúl Estrada Pérez y Sara Medina Gómez, whohadthe honor of receiving CSU
FifthGeneration.This year the team at UADY also counted with the support of Enrique Lara Nuño,
Noah Thomas Sandoval and Jorge TzecInterián, three student coordinators from previous
generation who contribute during the planning and the visit itself.

2. WednesdayNovember 20
After a long trip from Fort Collins, Colorado, the group in charge of Bobby Kunstmanand Pamela
Norris arrived in the city of Merida on Wednesday November the 20th, where they were
welcomed by students of the fourth and fifth generations of UADY.
The participants were able to enjoy of a dinner of regional food to
celebrate the reunion and where the first gifts from UADY were
Exchange; the group bonded more time before starting the more
formal activities of the program.

3. Thursaday November 21
Students of both universities visitedCuzamá, where after a tour in “truck”, the group had the
opportunity to visit the cenotes and even swim in them.
After their return to Mérida, the participants formed grouped equally conformed by students of
both universities.

4. During the afternoon, at the Nursing School, the presentation of CSU students took place; the host
families where invited to this presentation. The program was in charge of CSU’s student
coordinator,Matthew Donovan. A video made by CSU fifth generation was screened and
afterwards individual presentation by each member of the group took place.CSU students
presented the activities that in which they take place both inside and outside of the university, as
well as the importance of these very activities in their academic, professional and personal lives.
Friday November 22
CSU students visited the different schools at UADY,
each one of them visited the school related to their
major. Each and every one of these visits was
prepared by UADY students that belong to those
majors and the visits included varied activities like
class attendance, meeting academic authorities, lab
visits, etc.

5. UADY’s students prepared a session in which they were able to show CSU and UABIC students
some of the projects in which they are currently working, among which there are institutional
projects and projects that were born from
student initiatives. Among the projects
presented were UADY Global, Hoy En
TuComunidad,
DirigenciaEstudiantil,
IngenieríaVerde,
VoluntariadoAmbiental,
Training for theOlimpiadas del Conocimiento,
among others, the first three being
institutional programs and the last one being
entirely by and for students.
Saturday November 23
Students of both universities visited, Tixmehuac andSisbic, to show CSU students how the live in
the interior of the state is, and which are the customs and cultural singularities of each of these
places. This was achieved thanks to the cooperation of the habitants of both communities, who
opened their homes to the students, allowing them to know a little about their activities their
families and their lives.

6. Afterwards the students went to the Hobonil ranch. After eating they started their reflection
activities about their visit to the communities, mainly discussing the differences between the
communities and the city of Merida, the differences between the communities and the United
States, the similarities between these places, as well as the interpersonal communication
problems during the visit.

7. Sunday November 24
Sunday morning started with activation activities, followed by the traditional ranch rally and
challenges. The games consisted en several challenges that, even though they can be physical
demanding, require mainly of team work, leadership, and above all, of a lot of trust between the
participants.

8. Around noon, the group arrived to the archaeological site of Uxmal, where they made a tour in
charge of anthropology student, Ana Cristina Salinas Camargo. The participants visited some of the
pyramids and the CSU group didn’t miss the opportunity of taking the official photo of the
exchange for the office in charge of the organization (SLiCE).

9. Monday November 25
Monday started with a presentation in the auditorium of the School of Anthropology, this
presentation was for UADY authorities and it had the aim of presenting the history of the
Exchange program and the results that have come from the creation of the program. Among the
most important collaborations between both universities there are professional stays and
graduate studies, in which both universities have had students on more than one occasion. Adding
to these the presentation included the testimonies of former participants of both universities,
Enrique Lara Nuño y Noah Thomas Sandoval, who related their experiences during after the
program. Finally, theparticipants of thefifthgeneration of UADY: Alan Emmanuel Ayora Quintal,
Alida Paola Becerra García, Andrea Estefanía Garrido Martínez, Diana Carolina Vega Basto, Fany
Lucía Rubio Losa, Jesús Darío LoezaUc, Jesús Iván Toto Tun, RazielJazbani Cachón Herrera, Roberto
Mota Sansores and Sergio Canche Santiagowerepresented. It is worth mentioning the presence of
USA Consul in Merida, Sonya Tsiros, who has been a great support to the program and its
participants.

10. After this event the participants of this program went to the port of Progreso where they spent a
lovely afternoon.
To conclude with the programs’ activities, the group headed to Cholul, where they were welcomed
by Dr. Andres Aluja and his wife Hilde in their home. After a recap of the activities, the participants
shared a dinner of Mexican food before starting with the closure undertakings. Finally, among
words of thank you, presents and some tears and lots of hugs, came the time to say “see you
soon.” In a very emotional evening, UADY’s group said goodbye to CSU’s group formally
concluding this year’s visit, but extending the invitation so that inter-institutional and
interpersonal cooperation continues beyond this exchange program.