The Mexican school that implemented a deeply integrated family and community engagement system to holistically support marginalised children
SER School: Instituto Eduardo Tricio Gómez, a charity primary and secondary school in Torreón, Coahuila, Mexico, has implemented a three-way commitment between families, students and educators as the foundation of its relationship-driven learning model, which is transforming the learner’s educational outcomes, strengthening family relationships, creating healthier homes, and inspiring greater community pride and belonging. In the vulnerable rural community, many families have been affected by violence, instability, economic inequality, and limited educational opportunity, with learners often the first generation in their families to access high-quality education. Many have grown up in environments shaped by severe socioeconomic challenges, making the need for emotional support, trust, and community belonging just as important as academic learning.
Established on the belief that education could become one of the most powerful tools for expanding possibility in underserved communities, the school developed one of the region’s most deeply integrated family engagement systems. Combined with its extended-day, values-based learning approach inspired by the KIPP educational model, it has built an environment where academic learning, nutrition, emotional wellbeing, character development, and community collaboration are intentionally connected.
Students are building skills in applied mathematics and science and taking part in reading culture initiatives and character-building experiences designed to strengthen perseverance, responsibility, resilience, and empathy. Teachers are role models and drivers of the transformative culture who reinforce values both inside and outside the classroom.
At the centre of the school’s philosophy is the belief that long-term transformation can only happen when schools and families move in the same direction. Parent participation forms part of the Commitment to Excellence signed during admission, with families expected to actively engage in workshops, emotional support initiatives, and school activities throughout the year.
Every month, a School for Parents programme is hosted, led by psychologists and trained staff members, where families participate in discussions around parenting, adolescent development, emotional wellbeing, relationships, discipline, technology use, and family challenges affecting the wider community. The institution additionally provides emotional guidance, psychological support, therapeutic follow-up, and personalised assistance not only for students but also for parents navigating separation, financial stress, emotional difficulties, or family conflict.
The depth of trust built between the school and the surrounding communities has become one of its defining features. Students, parents, and teachers work as teams to build a peaceful, family-like environment where learners feel heard, valued, and genuinely supported. This culture of belonging has helped the school become one of the few trusted community spaces within the surrounding rural area.
Today, the institution serves nearly 700 students from more than 20 ejido communities across the region. Every month, students complete more than 6,000 hours of applied mathematics and over 6,000 hours of reading at home, helping to build stronger educational cultures within households. The institution provides more than 30,000 meals monthly to support student wellbeing. Academic outcomes have also strengthened, with mathematics averages reaching 86/100 in primary school and 90/100 in secondary school, alongside student success in regional mathematics, knowledge, and public speaking competitions.
Families report healthier routines at home that include stronger relationships and increased confidence. Students who once imagined limited possibilities are now aspiring to become engineers, scientists, doctors, and university graduates.
The school’s influence extends beyond its immediate community, and several schools within the wider SER School Network have drawn inspiration after observing the strength of its relationship-driven, community-centred model in practice. The institution has also become a recognised reference point for educators, business leaders, and visitors interested in understanding how long-term collaboration between schools, families, and communities can help expand opportunity in vulnerable settings.
