Gerardo Villagran

Gera creates learning spaces and opportunities for faculty members, instructors, and staff to explore experiential learning pedagogies, practices and trends.

These learnings opportunities include workshops, events, resources, consultations, institutes, collaborative and collective spaces and more. 

Gera also works with other faculties and departments at the UM on shared institutional initiatives related to experiential learning.

Gera joined the UM in 2017 as a community engaged learning coordinator. In that role, he designed, coordinated and facilitated multiple local and international experiential-learning programs to help students develop the mindset, skills, knowledge and experience required to connect their academic and professional journeys to the needs and realities of communities locally and abroad. In his time with the Office of Community Engaged Learning (Student Affairs), Gera co-authored authored Working in Good Ways: A Framework and Resources for Indigenous Community Engagement. Before joining the Centre, Gera worked with the UM Career Community and Experiential Learning Centre, building, and strengthening experiential learning partnerships with industry, government, and community. 

Gera holds a M.A. in philosophy from the University of Guelph, where he received funding (SSHRC) to research the limitations of traditional understandings of justice to respond to questions of intergenerational justice and climate change. He began working towards a PhD in Education at the UM. Gera’s current research interests revolve around questions of experiential learning, decolonization, pedagogies for non-Eurocentric knowledges, Indigenous community engaged learning, and environmental education. 

Gera was born and raised in Mexico. He immigrated to Canada with his parents and siblings in 2006. Before settling in Manitoba, he lived in Alberta, Nova Scotia and Ontario. He enjoys reading philosophy, minimalist running, intelligent electronic music and being outdoors with his daughter and wife. 

B.A, M.A

Ferland, N., Chen, A., Villagran Becerra G. (2021) Working in Good Ways: A Framework for Indigenous Community Engagement. Community Engaged Learning, University of Manitoba.

Joseph-Armand Bombardier CGS Master's Scholarship