Preserve the prestige that Zacatecas has built in recent years
Diecisiete jóvenes de Zacatecas viajaron esta semana a Cancún para competir en el Festival Académico Nacional 2026, llevando consigo no solo sus conocimientos en matemáticas, ciencias, humanidades e inglés, sino también el peso simbólico de una reputación institucional construida con esfuerzo colectivo. Su participación, organizada por el Cecytez y respaldada por el gobierno estatal, refleja una convicción más amplia: que la excelencia educativa no surge del azar, sino de sistemas que invierten en sus estudiantes desde las comunidades más alejadas hasta los centros urbanos. En un país donde la educación pública enfrenta desafíos persistentes, la presencia de estos jóvenes en el escenario nacional es, en sí misma, una declaración de posibilidades.
- Diecisiete estudiantes de distintos planteles del Cecytez —incluyendo centros de educación a distancia— ganaron su lugar en la competencia nacional tras superar una rigurosa selección estatal en múltiples disciplinas académicas.
- La delegación no viaja como un grupo de individuos talentosos, sino como representantes de una estrategia educativa estatal que el gobierno de David Monreal Ávila ha vinculado explícitamente a su Agenda del Progreso.
- El director general Julio César Ortiz Fuentes les recordó que su misión va más allá de los puntos: deben preservar el prestigio que Zacatecas ha acumulado en este festival y demostrar que el modelo educativo funciona.
- Con competidores distribuidos en tres niveles y provenientes de municipios tan diversos como Tlaltenango, Fresnillo, Río Grande y Plateros, la delegación refleja la amplitud geográfica y social del sistema Cecytez.
- El respaldo institucional —desde la Secretaría de Educación hasta los asesores docentes— subraya que detrás de cada estudiante hay una red de inversión pública que ahora espera ver sus frutos en Cancún.
Esta semana, diecisiete estudiantes del Cecytez abordaron un vuelo rumbo a Cancún con la reputación académica de Zacatecas entre sus manos. Habían ganado su lugar en el Festival Académico Nacional 2026 —una competencia de tres días que concluye el 21 de mayo— al imponerse en la etapa estatal en áreas como matemáticas, ciencias experimentales, humanidades, comunicación e inglés.
El acto de despedida, celebrado el 19 de mayo, estuvo encabezado por el director general del Cecytez, Julio César Ortiz Fuentes, quien habló en nombre del gobernador David Monreal Ávila. Su mensaje fue claro: los estudiantes no solo iban a competir, sino a demostrar los valores de compromiso, responsabilidad y trabajo en equipo que el estado busca cultivar en su juventud. También recordó que Zacatecas ha construido una sólida trayectoria en este festival nacional, posicionando al Cecytez como una de las instituciones educativas más destacadas del país.
La delegación se distribuyó en tres niveles competitivos. El Nivel I incluyó a siete jóvenes provenientes de planteles en Tlaltenango, Jerez, Chupaderos, Río Grande, Emiliano Zapata, El Refugio y Fresnillo. El Nivel II sumó cinco competidores de El Refugio, Río Grande, Tlaltenango y Plateros. El Nivel III estuvo conformado íntegramente por cinco estudiantes del plantel Tlaltenango.
Significativamente, varios de estos jóvenes provienen de los centros EMSaD —el sistema de educación media superior a distancia del Cecytez—, lo que evidencia que la excelencia académica no se concentra únicamente en los centros urbanos, sino que alcanza comunidades dispersas a lo largo del estado.
Ortiz Fuentes también reconoció el respaldo de la Secretaria de Educación, Gabriela Pinedo Morales, y de los asesores docentes que acompañaron el proceso. El mensaje institucional fue inequívoco: Zacatecas no envía individuos a Cancún, sino a los representantes de un sistema que ha apostado por ellos, y que ahora espera ver reflejado ese esfuerzo en los resultados.
Seventeen students from across Zacatecas boarded a plane to Cancún this week carrying the state's academic reputation with them. They had earned their spot at the National Academic Festival—a three-day competition running through May 21—by winning at the state level in subjects ranging from mathematics and experimental sciences to humanities, communication, and English. The Colegio de Estudios Científicos y Tecnológicos del Estado de Zacatecas, known as Cecytez, formally sent them off on May 19, with the director general, Julio César Ortiz Fuentes, speaking on behalf of Governor David Monreal Ávila.
Ortiz Fuentes framed the moment as more than just an academic exercise. He told the students they were there to demonstrate commitment, responsibility, and teamwork—values the state wanted to see embedded in its young people. But there was also a competitive edge to his remarks. Zacatecas, he said, had built a reputation over recent years at this national festival, one that had helped establish Cecytez as among the country's finest educational institutions. The students' job was to preserve that standing, to show that the state's educational strategy—what the government calls part of its Agenda del Progreso—was working.
The delegation itself was distributed across three competitive levels. At Level I, five young women and two young men would compete: Dhamar González from Tlaltenango, Hiromi Ramírez from Jerez, Isabella Ramos from Chupaderos, Katia Delgado from Río Grande, Ximena Torres from Emilia o Zapata, Antonio Mares from El Refugio, and Arturo Guerrero from Fresnillo. Level II brought five more competitors—Hernán Santibáñez, Josué Juárez, Jassiel Robledo, Jocabed Chávez, and Valentina Ramírez, drawn from El Refugio, Río Grande, Tlaltenango, and Plateros. Level III rounded out the team with five students from Tlaltenango: Carlos Illescas, Miguel Santiago, Alexander Santacruz, Zuhey Serrano, and Abigail Camacho.
These students came from different Cecytez campuses and from EMSaD centers—the system's distance education programs—meaning they represented not just the capital or major urban centers but the breadth of the state's educational reach. Each had survived a competitive state-level process to get here, demonstrating the knowledge and academic capacity that Ortiz Fuentes highlighted in his remarks.
The director also took a moment to acknowledge the institutional support behind the students' journey. He thanked the state administration, specifically the Secretary of Education, Gabriela Pinedo Morales, for backing both the students and their faculty advisors. This kind of recognition matters in the Mexican educational bureaucracy—it signals that the competition is not just a student affair but a coordinated effort involving teachers, administrators, and government resources working in concert toward what Ortiz called educational excellence. The message was clear: Zacatecas was not sending these students to Cancún as individuals. They were going as representatives of a system that had invested in them, and the state expected them to show what that investment had produced.
Notable Quotes
The students were urged to preserve the prestige and brightness that Zacatecas has maintained at this national competition in recent years— Julio César Ortiz Fuentes, Director General of Cecytez
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does a state government care so much about how its students perform at a national academic festival? It's not like the festival determines college admissions or job prospects.
It's about institutional prestige and proof of concept. When Zacatecas performs well at a national competition, it signals to families, to other states, and to the federal government that the educational system is functioning. It becomes a metric of success.
But seventeen students is a small number. How much does that really prove?
True, but these seventeen won at the state level first. They're the top performers. When they do well nationally, it validates the entire pipeline—the teachers, the curriculum, the resources. It says the system works.
The director mentioned this is part of the state's "Agenda del Progreso." Is that just political branding?
Partly, yes. But it's also how governments justify their educational spending. If Cecytez becomes known as one of the country's best colleges, that's a tangible outcome the administration can point to. It's both genuine investment and political capital.
What happens if they don't perform well in Cancún?
The narrative changes. Instead of "our system is excellent," it becomes "we need to do better." That's why the director's language was so careful—he was setting expectations while also giving the students permission to try their hardest without the weight of guaranteed victory.