Educational reform through sponsored projects in Curacao: government-sponsored technical and career institutions, postsecondary education, and the challenges of workforce development

Curacao and the Netherlands have a long history of sponsored projects and development funds to sustain the aftermath of continuous development, whether it is political, educational, social, or economic. This chapter examines educational reform through sponsored projects as the practical solution to workforce development, including the theoretical framework of sponsored projects as the vehicle that can strategically use the matching theory to transform a nation's educational system and economy. Findings suggest that the challenges of a workforce development funding opportunities are yet to be defined into sustainable projects by postsecondary vocational and higher education institutions. The chapter conceptualizes the current workforce development into a three-layers model. The first layer of workforce development is the basic model of highly vocational postsecondary institutions with strong apprenticeships and internships components. The second layer is a work/learn institution model not only for the immediate workforce development for the various industries, but with access to a specific career path into program of studies at the university level of importance to national development. The third layer is a more progressive curriculum within one institution with programs at the postsecondary vocational level and the higher education level. In thinking about what sponsored projects already accomplished for these institutions, the next level of reform should identify occupations not offered, and of those offered, an evaluation as to which should be at the certificate and/or the apprenticeship level, and which should be upgraded to the associate degree level curriculum with courses transferable into higher education as its global counterparts.

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