Cecilia María Vélez White has had a lasting impact on Colombia’s educational landscape. She served as Colombian minister of education from 2002 to 2010 and as president of Universidad Tadeo Lozano from 2011 to 2018. During her tenure in the ministry she expanded coverage, strengthened quality assessment, decentralized the system, and put forth several educational reforms. At the Universidad Tadeo Lozano she strengthened research and global partnerships, innovated the curriculum, and developed the university's infrastructure.
The Georgetown Americas Institute is pleased to host a conversation with Cecilia Maria Vélez to address the challenges to bring innovation and reform to education systems in the region. In this wide ranging conversation, Vélez will address issues such as the ability of higher education institutions to adapt to new technologies and develop curriculum to prepare graduates for the changing labor market, as well as the ability of governments in the region to implement much needed reforms to the sector. The conversation will be moderated by Ariel Fiszbein, former director of the Education Program at the Inter-American Dialogue.
This conversation will take place only in Spanish and will be livestreamed to the GAI YouTube channel.
Featuring
Cecilia Maria Velez is a Colombian economist and education expert who served as minister of education of Colombia from 2002 to 2010 under President Álvaro Uribe Vélez. During her tenure, she led significant reforms to expand educational coverage, improve quality, and strengthen higher education, emphasizing assessment, decentralization, and technical education. After leaving the ministry, she served as president of Universidad Tadeo Lozano from 2011 to 2018, where she focused on academic excellence, research, and institutional modernization. With a career dedicated to education policy and administration, Vélez has played a key role in shaping Colombia’s educational landscape, advocating for innovation, equity, and internationalization in the sector. Cecilia Maria gained her economics degree from the Universidad de Antioquia and a masters in economics from the University of Louvain.
Ariel Fiszbein is an economist and education policy expert with extensive experience in development and public policy. He is the former director of the education program at the Inter-American Dialogue, where he focused on improving education systems across Latin America. Previously, he worked at the World Bank, where he held various senior positions, including chief economist for human development and coordinator of the conditional cash transfer thematic group, contributing to policies that link social protection with education. Fiszbein has authored numerous studies on education reform, labor markets, and social policy, advocating for evidence-based strategies to enhance learning outcomes and equity in the region. Fiszbein holds a Ph.D. in economics from the University of California, Berkeley.