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Dominican Bishop Proposes Temporary Classrooms Amidst School Space Shortage
🇩🇴 Dominican Republic /Culture & Society

Dominican Bishop Proposes Temporary Classrooms Amidst School Space Shortage

From Diario Libre · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Sources not specified Context piece
  • Bishop Jesús Castro Marte urged the Dominican government and private entities to temporarily provide facilities like hotels and warehouses as classrooms.
  • This proposal aims to address a potential shortage of school spaces for over 2 million students at the start of the academic year.
  • The Dominican Teachers' Association warns of a deficit of 7,000 to 8,000 classrooms, while the Ministry of Education assures sufficient capacity.

Bishop Jesús Castro Marte has called on the Dominican government, churches, businesses, and property owners to temporarily open up unused facilities, including hotels and warehouses, to serve as classrooms. This urgent appeal comes as the country faces a potential shortage of school spaces for the upcoming academic year, which begins August 24.

There are warehouses, facilities, hotels that are not being used and other spaces that could be conditioned for educational purposes.

— Jesús Castro MarteBishop Castro Marte described potential temporary classroom solutions in a message posted on his X account.

More than 2 million students are expected to return to school, and Castro Marte highlighted that existing classrooms are insufficient to meet the growing demand. He suggested the state could enter into temporary rental agreements with owners of suitable properties that could be adapted for educational purposes while new schools are built or completed. "There are warehouses, facilities, hotels that are not being used and other spaces that could be conditioned for educational purposes," Castro Marte stated.

His proposal aligns with concerns raised by the Dominican Teachers' Association (ADP). The ADP estimates a deficit of 7,000 to 8,000 classrooms and warns that around 153,000 three-year-olds might be unable to enroll due to a lack of space in early childhood education. The union also expressed doubts about the progress of ongoing school construction projects, noting that only 48.5% of 10,700 classrooms initiated in 2020 have been completed.

The available classrooms are not enough to meet this growing demand.

— Jesús Castro MarteThe bishop explained the urgency of his proposal regarding the upcoming school year.

However, the Ministry of Education offers a more optimistic outlook. On July 26, the ministry assured that all student enrollment demands would be met. They projected the delivery of approximately 1,500 new classrooms by August and a total of 2,300 to 2,500 by the end of the year. The ministry acknowledged that some areas face specific challenges but maintained that overall capacity would be sufficient.

This is a moment for national unity. Education is a responsibility that must concern us all.

— Jesús Castro MarteThe bishop emphasized the need for collective action to address the educational challenges.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Diario Libre in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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