Dominican teachers threaten to skip school year over stalled works

Teachers at the Instituto Tecnológico de Artes y Oficios in Santo Domingo say they will not start the 2026-2027 school year on August 24 unless authorities resume construction and renovation work that has been stalled for over a year. The warning came from the Noreste section of the Dominican Teachers Association (ADP) during a press conference at the school Source: hoydo.

The dispute

ADP president Wellin Ramírez said the unfinished areas include the auditorium, cafeteria, covered court, and administrative offices, which he called essential for the school's operation Source: hoydo. He dismissed the occasional presence of a few workers as a temporary measure that would not solve the problem, adding, "This teaching body and this community cannot take any more" Source: hoydo.

Sources differ on how long the works have been abandoned: hoydo says "more than a year," while eldia.do reports "more than three years" Source: hoydo; Source: eldia.do. The teachers also demanded completion of pending work at several other schools, including the Polvizabela School and the Padre Omar Honetti High School Source: hoydo.

The stakes

The school, built in 1952, serves about 1,100 students across ten technical programs accredited by INFOTEP Source: eldia.do. Teacher Alexander Marmolejos said students eat in hallways and that a graduating class has never used the basketball court Source: eldia.do.

Ramírez called on Education Minister Luis Miguel De Camps García and President Luis Abinader to act, warning that if demands are not met, the entire educational community of District 15-04 will join the protest Source: eldia.do. Teachers chanted, "If they don't solve it, we don't start" Source: eldia.do.