Unidad educativa Mejia, public secondary educational institution in Quito, the capital of Ecuador
Unidad Educativa Mejia is a public secondary school in the historic center of Quito, known for its neoclassical main building with tall columns and decorated facades. The Edificio Central sits at the heart of the campus and is surrounded by additional buildings added over the course of the 20th century.
The school was founded in 1897 under President Eloy Alfaro as the first secular school in the country, initially housed in the former Beaterio complex. In 1922, architect Wilhelm Spahr designed the new main building in neoclassical style, giving the campus the look it still has today.
The school is named after Juan Mejía, an Ecuadorian thinker whose name became closely tied to secular education in the country. On the grounds, visitors can walk through two small museums: one devoted to natural history and another with sculptures representing indigenous peoples from different regions of Ecuador.
The campus is in the old town of Quito, within walking distance of the main historic sites. Visiting the on-site museums is easier during school holidays or in the late afternoon, when daily school activity winds down.
The school library holds a handwritten manuscript from 1785 on smallpox, authored by the thinker Eugenio Espejo, alongside books dating back to the 1600s. This collection is open to the public, making the library one of the more unexpected stops in the old city.
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