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Dominican Education Group Calls National Protest Over School Demands
The Colectivo Ciudadano por la Calidad Educativa has called a national protest for Wednesday, August 12, in Santo Domingo, demanding higher wages for public-school administrative workers and action on infrastructure and education policy issues.
The Colectivo Ciudadano por la Calidad Educativa is calling for a national education protest in Santo Domingo on Wednesday, August 12, bringing together workers and other sectors of the public education system to demand changes in wages, school infrastructure and transparency.
The demonstration is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. at Plaza Simón Bolívar on Avenida Máximo Gómez. Juan Valdez, president of the collective and executive director of the Observatorio Educativo, urged employees and members of the broader education community to participate.
Administrative Workers Are Central to the Protest
The main demand is a salary increase for what the organizers describe as 80,000 administrative employees in public schools. The group argues that improving working conditions for non-teaching personnel is part of the broader challenge of strengthening the Dominican Republic’s public education system.
The protest also includes demands involving school construction and outstanding payments. Organizers are calling for the government to settle pending obligations to contractors working on school infrastructure and to move forward with the construction of more than 28,000 classrooms.
Education Evaluation Contract Also Under Scrutiny
Another major issue is transparency surrounding the Teacher Performance Evaluation process. The collective is demanding publication of the contract associated with the evaluation, adding the issue to a series of concerns it has raised about the way the process has been managed.
Questions surrounding the evaluation have been a recurring point of contention within the education sector in recent months. Valdez has previously criticized aspects of the process and called for greater transparency around the digital platform and its contracting arrangements.
The Dominican Republic’s Ministry of Education is responsible for regulating and providing pre-university education services nationwide, making disputes over staffing, infrastructure and evaluation policies relevant to the operation of the country’s public-school system.
Protest Adds to Broader Education Dispute
The latest demonstration follows other public actions and criticisms from education-sector groups this year. Previous protests involving the Colectivo Ciudadano por la Calidad Educativa have focused particularly on transparency in the Teacher Performance Evaluation and concerns over the conditions under which the process has been carried out.
For families and communities that depend on public schools, the demands extend beyond salaries. The calls for additional classrooms and payments to infrastructure contractors point to broader questions about the physical capacity and day-to-day operation of the school system.
Valdez said the collective expects workers and sectors connected to public education to join Wednesday’s demonstration. The organizers are seeking responses to the demands while pressing authorities for greater transparency and progress on unresolved education issues.
