Personal Enrichment Program

Come and participate in the Lake Chapala Society's new Personal Enrichment Program (PEP) 2018.1 series. This is one response to our members call for more programs, both entertaining and fun.

Our next series of programs features highly qualified experts such as Rachel McMillen. Each program will present topics that will elucidate an understanding of yourself and Mexico.

The courses are easy to choose from and consist of 2 - 8 class sessions. The prices are very affordable, and the class sizes are small.

Please Note:

• The fee to participate in each Personal Enrichment Program is payable in cash at the LCS office, or on-line via credit card, or PayPal. On-line payments are subject to a 7% surcharge to cover processing and foreign exchangefees.
• All Personal Enrichment Program courses are limited to Lake Chapala Society Members only. If you are not an LCS Member,you will be assessed a one Month Membership fee ($250 MXN), in addition to the course enrollment fee.
• Your LCS Membership must be active on the date of the course presentation. If your membership will expire before the selected course date,it must be renewed to attend the course.
• The LCS Office should be notified at least 5 days before the course begins if a cancellation is needed. There is no refund.
• A waiting list will be created for each course where member interest exceeds the maximum enrollment.

Mexico's Winter Holidays and Traditions

Course Fee: $550 MXN
Min/Max Students required: 11/20
Course Dates: Wednesdays, November 7 - December 19, 2018
Course Time: 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM
Course Location: South Campus Board Room

Course Description: Understand the diverse and fascinating traditions surrounding Mexico's winter holiday season. For instance, learn the informal name of the Christmas period between December 12 and January 6, and the meaning of the Aztec name for poinsettias, and much, much more.

Enrollment ends: October 31, 2018.

Judy King

Contact: judykinginmexico@gmail.com
Cell: (Mex) 331-301-6783

Journalist, Real Estate, Business
Publisher, online magazine "Living at Lake Chapala", 2001 - 2013
Editor, Lake Chapala Review, 2008 – 2014
Columnist, Guadalajara Reporter, 2015-2016
Author, "Living at Lake Chapala," 2014
Living in Ajijic since 1990

Need a driver's license?

Course Fee: $750 MXN (Includes course and trip)
Min/Max Students required: 15/16
Course Dates: Monday and Tuesday, November 12 - 13, 2018
Course Time: Monday 10:00 - 11:30 AM,
Tuesday 7:00 Am - Noon
Course Location: South Campus Board Room

Course Description: We continue to expand the services we have for the community, so, now we set out to launch the course for the driving test and a trip to the SeMov in Guadalajara to process or renew the driver's license. It is important that you register before November 2, because we have to schedule the appointment of your procedure online with sufficient anticipation. Once you are enrolled, you will be sent an email with all of the instructions for this. The driving test can be taken in English in Guadalajara (only for new licenses).

Enrollment ends: November 2, 2018.

Alfredo Pérez Aldana

Contact: directoreducacion@lakechapalasociety.com

Lake Chapala Society Director of Education

Revolutionary Women in Modern Mexican History.

Course Fee: $350 MXN
Min/Max Students required: 11/25
Course Dates: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, December 10, 12, 13, 2018
Course Time: 10:00 - 12:30 PM
Course Location: South Campus Board Room

Course Description: This course will highlight the voices and experiences of women, changing the prevailing narrative of the Mexican Revolution and post-revolutionary state formation by placing women at center stage. We'll examine how women seized opportunities created by modernization and revolutionary upheaval to challenge conventions of sexuality, work, family life, religious practices, and civil rights.

After a glance at women in colonial era Mexico, we'll take a fresh look at women's participation in the Mexican Revolution, from their homes and in workplaces and through politics and community activism. We'll see how women of diverse backgrounds with differing goals were actively involved in the Revolution, first in military roles during the violent early phase of civil war, and later in the state-building process. Drawing on a variety of perspectives, we will notice the ways women variously accepted, contested, used, and manipulated the revolutionary project in Mexico.

Our subjects will range from nonconforming soldaderas in the military to upright Damas Católicas, from prostitutes writing the president to demand healthcare rights to Chicas Modernas in Mexico City pilloried by the press and male students. Women refashioned their lives, seeking relief from bad marriages through divorce courts and preparing for new employment opportunities through vocational education. Activists ranging from Catholics to Communists mobilized for political and social rights. Although forced to compromise in the face of fierce opposition, these women made an indelible imprint on post-revolutionary society.

We'll recover narratives that have been virtually written out of the historical record, bringing to light a rich and complex array of women's experiences in the revolutionary and post-revolutionary era in Mexico.

Enrollment ends: December 3, 2018.

Dan Grippo, Ph.D.


Daniel Grippo first traveled to Mexico in 1980 and has studied and lived in a variety of Mexican locations. He holds an M.A. and Ph.D. in Latin American History as well as an M.A. in Religious Studies. In addition to teaching at various U.S. universities, for the past 10 years Dan's history lectures at the International Friendship Club in Puerto Vallarta have raised money for charity and attracted large turnouts. Dan recently began offering courses at LCS.

Negotiating Paradise: The History of Tourism and Expat Communities in Mexico.

Course Fee: $350 MXN
Min/Max Students required: 11/25
Course Dates: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, December 10, 12, 13, 2018
Course Time: 2:00 - 4:30 PM
Course Location: South Campus Board Room

Course Description: This course will provide an understanding and appreciation of the richness and complexity of tourist and expat enclaves in Mexico by examining their roots and development over the past two centuries, from quiet beginnings to the booming multi-national, multi-billion dollar industry they are today. Special attention will be paid to the ambiguities and contradictions of tourism—does it represent national development or foreign exploitation, or a mixture of both?

Tourism in Mexico got off to a shaky start in the 19th century era of Revolts and Railroads. It blossomed in the 20th century in the aftermath of two World Wars, fueled by diplomacy and drugs, beatniks and expats, World Heritage sites, colonial cities, and beachfront paradises. A wide range of sources and voices will be employed to tell the tale of how tourism has been constructed and negotiated by various and competing interests over the course of modern Mexican history.

Along the way, we will touch upon the history of expat communities and tourist meccas such as San Miguel de Allende, Lake Chapala/Ajijic, Cuernavaca, Acapulco, Cancún, Los Cabos, and Puerto Vallarta.

Enrollment ends: December 3, 2018.

Dan Grippo, Ph.D.


See above for Instructor's background and experience.