Aquetza

Aquetza is an opportunity to serve your community and engage in a unique form of education and community-building.

Aquetza: Youth Leadership, Education and Community Empowerment is a FREE residential summer program that will be taking place at CU-Boulder and in communities across Colorado from July 8-22, 2022 In Nahuatl, the language of the Mexica/Aztec indigenous people of central and northern Mexico,“aquetza” translates as “to lift your chin up.” This was chosen with great intention, and embodies what the A

quetza summer program is all about: Empowering youth with strong ties to Chicana/o/x communities to learn to see themselves as community leaders with their own unique Precious Knowledge. A joint project between members of Colorado's Chicana/o community and UMAS y MEChA de CU-Boulder, our primary goal is to provide a space where youth participants, counselors, instructional staff, and community members are given the opportunity to build relationships, deepen their academic knowledge and skills, learn about social change, interrogate their cultural identities, explore their communities, and articulate a vision of themselves as scholars and community leaders. We do this by providing high school students from across Colorado with an experience focused on examining the history, literature, health, sciences, and the socio-political issues surrounding our communities. Our approach seeks to draw upon the historical, intellectual, and creative activism history of Colorado’s Chicana/o and Latina/o communities, as well as community based skills around organizing and the arts. In this way, Aquetza will produce youth who have a fundamentally new relationship to academics and schooling, and who are prepared to take up servant-leadership roles in their communities. Staff support High school students from across Colorado as we engage with…
-Healing, Identity work and Organizing
-Decolonial pedagogical approaches as we examine Literature, History, & Science
-Testimonio, Personal story-telling, Teatro, Spoken word, visual and performing arts
-Creative & analytical writing
-College counseling & support
-Encuentro performances to significant crowds

Our goals for the youth we serve include:
-Develop an identity as a current and future community organizer/activist
-Engage with the world as it is, and imagine the world as it could be.
-Enhance the relationship between students, the community and the university
-Create new outlets for artistic and personal expression
-Build networks for future organizing work with youth across the state
-Come to see themselves as holders and producers of new and valuable knowledge with the tools to become leaders for positive social change in their communities.
-Gain a new understanding of how academic subjects connect to one another, to cultura, and to the world in which we live

Applications for 2022 will open early in February. Online Application: http://www.colorado.edu/aquetza/aquetza-application

05/10/2026

Come support Aquetza and buy a bowl of pozole! 🌱 Donations are welcome - everything helps as we prepare for this years program ✊🏽

04/18/2026

Compás! We are fundraising for the 2026 Summer Program! Please consider purchasing raffle tickets or donating if you can! ✊🏽

03/09/2026

Open for any student needing support with our two-part application! Please share with any students who may be interested. Reach out if you have any questions ✊🏽

02/05/2026

We’re hosting a student and parent information session for those interested in learning more about our summer program! You’ll have the chance to ask questions and meet staff! ✊🏽

Please share with any families who may be interested 🤎

01/22/2026

SAVE THE DATE!

We are excited to share that the application for the 2026 Aquetza Summer Program opens on February 2nd and will stay open until May 5th! This is a great opportunity for high school youth to learn Chican@/Latin@ History, examine historical and contemporary social and political issues, and see themselves as holders and producers of valuable knowledge. ✊🏽 More information to come. Please reach out with any questions!

Who knows why we chose February 2nd and May 5th as dates for our application window? Leave your guesses in the comments 🤓

10/08/2025

Open to all interested in being part of our 2026 Aquetza staff! Hope to see some new and old faces ✊🏽 Let us know if you have any questions!

10/03/2025

We are excited to begin preparations for our 2026 summer program. As an Aquetza staff member you will mentor, educate, and support local youth as they build a better and more just world. No experience necessary, all educators, creatives, and compas welcome ✊🏽 Fill out the interest form linked in our bio or scan the QR code above. ¡Que viva Aquetza!

03/28/2025

Tu eres mi otro yo, you are my other me. Juntos luchamos por la educación y liberación de toda la gente. Our staff is hard at work coordinating the summer 2025 Aquetza program! 38 days left to apply! 🦅👊🏽 📸

10/22/2024

Upcoming event at Ollin Cafetzin's brick-and-mortar. ‼️

This event is in honor of Mictlán: The Afterlife of the Mexica and Aztec people. 🏵🏵

A family-friendly event with elements of storytelling, art creation, and Mesoamerican instruments and dancing and a lineup of Indigenous-Chicano vendors✨️

Not to mention, we will provide refreshing beverages by Ollin Cafetzin Mexican pastries from , and good food for the soul such as tamallies and enchiladas.

See you there as well.👁

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Boulder

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http://colorado.edu/aquetza

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Aquetza C/o UMAS Y MEChA
Boulder, CO
80309

Aquetza

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