The abandoned site of the Chapala Media Park will transformed into the new campus for the University of Guadalajara’s Centro Universitario de Chapala (CUChapala), as jointly announced Tuesday, April 9 by UdeG Rector Ricardo Villanueva and Jalisco Governor Enrique Alfaro.
Lomeli revealed that around 80 million pesos will be invested in the CUChapala project for the construction of four new buildings, along with rehabilitation of the existing facilities, to accommodate 76 classrooms and a laboratory.
The aim is make the complex operational by January 2025.
Located a short distance off the Libramiento bypass, the new campus will become the academic home for the 120 students already enrolled in the CUChapala courses in gerontology and nursing who currently study at a former elementary school in downtown Chapala on loan to UdeG from the municipal government.
“Chapala is a place where thousands of retirees decide to settle,” Lomeli remarked, noting the need for developing human resources to attend to their health care needs.
In keeping with the original vocation of the Media Park, the CUChapala curriculum will be expanded to introduce studies in audiovisual fields. It will include career courses in Film and Media Production, Narrative and Emerging Media, and Animation and Special Effects.
The rector highlighted emerging UdeG ties with Filma Jalisco, the state government’s public policy initiative to promote the audiovisual industry through support and economic incentives, talent development, and attraction of investments and suppliers.
For his part, Alfaro explained that one of the most important government aspirations in terms of economic growth is to turn Jalisco into a hub of the audiovisual industry in Mexico and Latin America. The formation of professionals at the University Center will contribute to achieving that goal, he said.
“The fact that this center has this special vocation — and what this can generate in a few years — will make us proud for having taken a decisive step to consolidate a polestar for the formation of talent,” he said.