The Universidad ORT Uruguay and Mississippi State University signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at strengthening cooperation between the two institutions. The agreement provides for new exchange opportunities for students and faculty, as well as opportunities to develop joint research initiatives, promote academic mobility, and share educational and cultural resources.
This new phase of collaboration stems in part from the project Building Regional Initiatives for Developing Global Educators for Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (BRIDGE-TESOL), developed by Mississippi State University and the ORT Institute of Education.
The initiative, which began in 2025, promoted the professional development of English teachers in Uruguay and the United States through in-person workshops, virtual exchange opportunities, and the creation of an international learning community.
Led by Dr. Lourdes Cardozo Gaibisso —a professor and researcher in TESOL and Linguistics at Mississippi State University—and Mtr. Natalia Zambon Ferronato —deputy coordinator of the Language Center and instructor at the ORT Institute of Education—BRIDGE-TESOL sought to create opportunities for collaboration among teachers from both countries. More specifically, this was achieved through the exchange of experiences, reflection on teaching practices, and the joint construction of knowledge.
The experience helped strengthen ties between the institutions and paved the way for broader cooperation. According to information released by Mississippi State University, the new agreement will make it possible to identify areas of common interest and plan new academic and research initiatives, in addition to expanding opportunities for international exchange.
Dr. Denise Vaillant, dean of the Institute of Education, highlighted the value of these types of partnerships and noted the importance of internationalization in strengthening teacher training, broadening professional horizons, and enriching teaching practices.
“We are particularly pleased to see how this collaboration is evolving into a broader institutional partnership, with great potential for future academic cooperation initiatives, ”said Dr. María Azpiroz, director of International Relations at the Universidad ORT Uruguay.
For his part, Cardozo Gaibisso highlighted the agreement’s significance: “This partnership marks the beginning of a lasting relationship between our universities, which will allow us to advance research, service, and learning on a global scale.”
- This article was based on information published by Mississippi State University in its Newsroom on July 17, 2026, in the article“University Expands Global Partnerships with New MOU with the Universidad ORT Uruguay .”
The agreement is linked to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 17, Partnerships for the Goals, one of the SDGs adopted by the United Nations in 2015 to address global challenges by 2030, due to its emphasis on institutional and international cooperation.