Social, gender rights in Mexico topic of WVU Law panel

MORGANTOWN -- "Social and Gender Rights in Mexico" is the topic that will be examined by two visiting scholars from the University of Guanajuato, in Guanajuato, Mexico.

The panel discussion features Professor Patricia Begne who will speak on women's rights in Mexico, and Professor Katya Rodriguez, who will speak on social rights and divisions in Mexico. Visiting McDougall Lecturer on International Law, Professor Fernando Patron Sanchez and Associate Dean of Faculty Development and Research, Valorie K. Vojdik will act as discussants. Professor Jim Friedberg will moderate the panel discussion that will take place at the West Virginia University College of Law on Thursday, Oct. 22 at 3:30 p.m. in room 157 at the WVU Law Center.

Begne is a professor of law at the University of Guanajuato in Guanajuato, Mexico. She has also practiced law and serves as a consultant to law firms in the U.S.

Begne received her degree with honors from the University of Guanajuato, where she also took a postgraduate degree. She attended University of Salamanca in Spain for a course on civil law, and currently is a Candidate for Doctorate in Law with the University of Granada, Spain.

Begne was also Vice President of the Human Rights Committee and Special Advisor to the Women´s Rights Committee of the Inter-American Bar Association headquartered in Washington, D.C. She was President of the University Women's Association affiliated with the International Federation of University Women from 1993 to 1998.

She has served as head of the Ombudsman Office at the University of Guanajuato since 2007.

Katya Rodriguez is a professor of sociology and political science at University of Guanajuato, Mexico. Currently she is head of the Department of Public Management and Development and a full time teacher and researcher at the Social Sciences Division at the University of Guanajuato, Mexico. She has a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Essex in England. Her areas of research and expertise are poverty and social policy in Mexico. She has published several academic articles on those topics.

Guanajuato, Mexico was designated as a Sister City with Morgantown in 2007 as the two communities share a significant history of exchange of programs by WVU and the University of Guanajuato.

This event is co-sponsored by the WVU College of Law International Law Society and the WVU College of Law Women's Law Caucus. The panel discussion is open to the public.