WILLEMSTAD – The signing of a cooperation agreement between ROC Mondriaan, the school boards Dienst Openbare Scholen (DOS) and Rooms-Katholiek Centraal Schoolbestuur (RKCS), and the University of Curaçao Dr. Moises Da Costa Gomez (UoC) took place yesterday during a ceremony. The purpose of the agreement is to formalize the cooperation within the framework of the learning hotel Parasasa Hotel Curaçao. This reports the Curaçao tourism agency CTB.
The main values of the agreement are cooperation, dedication, responsibility and transparency. The signing ceremony was attended by Minister of Education Sithree van Heydoorn (MFK), Minister of Social Development, Labor and Welfare (SOAW) Ruthmilda Larmonie-Cecilia (PNP) in representation of Minister of Economic Development Ruisandro Cijntje (PNP) and several partners from the public and private sector. During the ceremony, everyone had a chance to view a pilot room, which gave a glimpse of what can be expected once the learning hotel opens its doors to guests in the first quarter of 2024.
At the leerhotel, students receive practical lessons focused on topics related to management in the hospitality and tourism industry. The learning hotel is part of the Curaçao Hospitality and Tourism Training Centre (CHTTC) foundation and is a collaboration between CTB, the Curaçao Hospitality & Tourism Association (Chata) and ROC Mondriaan in The Hague. There is also close cooperation with the educational institutions Maris Stella SBO, Nilda Pinto SBO, UoC, and with the government and the business community.
At the start of a school year, the students of Nilda Pinto SBO and Maris Stella SBO are taking classes at the learning hotel. In the morning, they have various lessons focused on the competencies needed in the tourism and hospitality industry. In the afternoon, they visit different organizations in the tourism and hospitality industry to see and experience up close how work is done in practice.
The learning hotel’s ultimate goal is to contribute to more and better educated personnel qualified to enter the labor market of the hospitality and tourism industry.