The federal government presented details of the new Rita Cetina Gutiérrez Universal Scholarship Program, which will eventually benefit 21.4 million public school students across Mexico.

Education Minister Mario Delgado announced the program on Oct. 14, adding that from now through Jan. 17, 2025, the Public Education Ministry (SEP) and the Welfare Ministry will be organizing reunions to meet with parents and teachers at each of the 35,000 public secondary schools across the country.

Who will benefit from the scholarship program?

The new program builds upon the Benito Juárez Welfare Scholarship program, inaugurated in 2019, which was specifically designed to provide economic support to low-income families with school-age kids.

The new program is designed to benefit all students — independently of income level — from preschool through high school, with the goal of assisting parents financially, and preventing children from dropping out of school for economic reasons.

When will the scholarship program take effect?

Delgado told reporters that the scholarships will be awarded to the 5.6 million secondary school children enrolled in Mexico’s public schools beginning in the first semester of 2025. 

Starting early next year, the SEP will organize assemblies with parents and teachers of primary school students to implement the scholarship program for those students in the middle of next year. The same routine will be followed before the scholarship program for kindergarten students is installed.

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What are the terms of the scholarship?

In the first stage of the program, each family with a child enrolled in secondary school will receive 1,900 pesos (US $95) on a bimonthly basis. Families with additional kids in secondary school would receive an extra 700 pesos (US $35) per child.

The government has not yet announced the scholarship figures for primary school and kindergarten students.

What is the application process?

Parents must supply an official ID, birth certificates, proof of residence and their CURP identity card. Each student must supply a birth certificate, a CURP identity card and education transcripts.

Who was Rita Cetina Gutiérrez, ‘la Cantora de la Patria’?

Rita Cetina Gutiérrez (1846–1908) was a Mexican educator, writer and feminist who promoted women’s education in Mérida, Yucatán. She helped found a literary society, a newspaper and a school.

Cetina’s literary output included poetry and fiction. Due to the nationalist themes present in many of her poems, she was dubbed the “Cantora de la Patria” (songstress of the nation).

With reports from Uno TV, El Universal and El Informador