Maria Estrada Mendoza

A Mexican educator who established rural schools to empower indigenous communities

Maria Estrada Mendoza (1910–1998) was a pioneering educator in Mexico who dedicated her life to providing education to marginalized indigenous groups. Born in Oaxaca, she founded the Escuela de la Tierra (School of the Earth) in 1945, a mobile school system that traveled to remote villages in Chiapas and Guerrero. Her approach integrated Zapotec, Mixtec, and Maya languages into curricula, countering colonial-era educational policies that suppressed indigenous cultures.

Mendoza's work influenced Mexico's Escuelas Rurales (Rural Schools) program and inspired UNESCO's literacy initiatives in Latin America. Her memoir Voces de la Sierra (1982) documents her experiences, while her advocacy led to the creation of the Comisión Nacional de Educación Indígena (National Indigenous Education Commission) in 1971. Mendoza's legacy endures through the Beca Estrada Mendoza scholarship fund for indigenous students.

Discover her story at CONALITEG or read her writings at Biblioteca Mexicana.