A large group of persons were present last Monday at the official opening of the Godfried Bontenbal Technical Center on Saba. The former Leather Factory at Cove Bay is now the place where the technical TVET (Technical Vocational Education & Training) education of the Saba Comprehensive School (SCS) will be given. Part of the festivities included the kick-off of the "Skill is Power" campaign on Saba organized by RCN department of Education Culture & Science.
The official programme started with a beautiful rendition of the Saba national song by five students of the Saba Comprehensive School and the blessing of the building by Pastor Liburd. Immediately after, the word was given to chairman of the board Roy Smith and director Michiel Boeken, after which Chris Johnson Commissioner of Education unveiled the new name of the building. He did this together with Godfried Hassell and Henk Bontenbal, the first two technical teachers after whom the building is named.
The formal part of the programme was concluded by the Dutch Caribbean project leader Gerard Maas, who gave the official green light for the start of the "Skill is Power" campaign. The campaign is developed together with the Saba Comprehensive School and the Foundation Social Workplace Saba. The goal of the campaign is to show young people, their parents and family members the importance of workmanship; and that vocational education offers a good future perspective. In the campaign students and skilled workers of the island demonstrate that they are proud of the vocational education they are pursuing and of the work they do. The Bonairian version of this campaign has already started on March 3rd and in April St. Eustatius will follow.
In the recently opened building the technical classes of the Saba Comprehensive School will be conducted. Following the first two general school years students of the Saba Comprehensive School can choose between the "academic stream" (year 3) and the "vocational stream" (year 2). During the two school years of the vocational stream the TVET programme will be offered, supplemented with several general educational subjects. This educational system provides for the local need for broadly educated professionals. In the well equipped classrooms students can do practical training in technical subjects such as welding, painting, carpentry, bricklaying, plumbing and electrical engineering.
Students, who complete the 4 year course, will receive a diploma recognized by the Dutch government on the level of vmbo (basic vocational course of study). Effective August 1st 2012 students on Saba can pursue their education on level 2 of TVET.
For the duration of the "Skill is Power" campaign, from March until June, posters will be visible throughout the entire island of students who are attending vocational education, and who will relate why they chose for this and what their future plans are. But also of a few professionals, who relate how they came into their profession. These students and professionals will also communicate their message by way of a series of newspaper ads. There will also be a radio commercial in which a student and professional will alternately tell about their training and profession.
The campaign is further supported by the Facebook page "Skillispower" with information about the campaign; where among others a professional profile will be posted weekly to inform young people about potential professions and the course of training to these professions. These profiles will be made available free of charge at public locations in the form of pamphlets. Finally, for the duration of the campaign, several radio and television programmes will address vocational education and the importance of this type of education for Saba. The "Skill is Power" campaign emphasizes the added value of skilled workers on the island and also demonstrates the importance of well qualified workers, who have the proper preparatory training. The young people, who will speak, have all consciously chosen for vocational education and show pleasure and pride in their study and work.