DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: First students graduate from new school
35 students receive certification from Salesian PLUS School of Communication
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
(MissionNewswire) The first group of 35 students has graduated from the Salesian PLUS School of Communication in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The certificate they received means the students have successfully completed the seven steps that accredit them as Salesian communicators.
The PLUS school has been in operation for the last two years, and students have explored topics in communication, theology, writing, speech making, photography, and social networks. The program is focused on the development of knowledge and technical skills required by the people involved in the coordination of communication in Salesian programs and in the corporate sector.
Carlos Cuevas, of the Salesians of the Antilles Province Commission for Communication, organized the program. At the graduation, Father José Pastor Ramírez, provincial, encouraged graduates to continue to grow and develop as professionals in the world of communication and beyond. He stressed they are the ones who will lead the work in the future and show the world the true essence of the Salesians.
“Communication skills are vital in every facet of employment,” said Father Timothy Ploch, interim director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “The students in this program acquire numerous skills to advance the Salesian mission and find work in the corporate sector.”
Nearly half of youth under the age of 18 live in poverty in the Dominican Republic, according to UNICEF. Although the country’s economy has been steadily improving, the country’s poor people still struggle to get enough food to eat and to access safe drinking water and adequate housing. Only 30% of youth finish primary school and only 18% finish secondary school on time. Schools are in poor shape with nearly half having no access to safe drinking water and more than 60% lacking adequate bathroom facilities.
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Sources:
ANS Photo (usage permissions and guidelines must be requested from ANS)
UNICEF – Dominican Republic
