From left: SPICE Foundation president Leonora Sneek-Gibbs, students Elexandrina Courtar and Valerie Ulloa, and NCF director Francine Foe.
ST. EUSTATIUS--Two New Challenges Foundation (NCF) students left St. Eustatius on Friday, August 21, to pursue their education in Bonaire. Valerie Ulloa and Elexandrina Courtar successfully completed the Youth Social Opportunity Programme SKJ and were accepted at Scholengemeenschap Bonaire (SGB). They will be studying leisure and sports and business administration at the MBO level.
Both students were excited and fearful at the same time, embarking on this educational opportunity. “Studying abroad is one of the most beneficial experiences for a student to discover oneself, while gaining an understanding of a different culture, responsibility and independence, and it tests the student’s ability to adapt to diverse situations while being able to solve problems,” said NCF director Francine Foe.
“At New Challenges Foundation we ensure that every student, after completion of the educational programme, has a personal perspective in the areas of communication, positive learning or work attitude, self-reliance, and can solve problems and is competent. Our main objective at NCF is to enable students to be productive citizens,” Foe said.
Ulloa and Courtar would not have been able to study abroad without support and financial assistance from the public entity St. Eustatius and St. Eustatius Promotion of International Culture and Education (SPICE) Foundation.
Foe extended a “huge thank you” to both organisations for making the dreams of both students a reality. “Mere words could never express our gratitude to teacher Hilary Udenhout for assisting the students with the Dutch language. She has worked diligently with the students in preparation for the Skype intake, which was done in Dutch.”
SPICE president Leonora Sneek-Gibbs said the foundation was able to step up to the plate to assist the two students who are furthering their education in Bonaire, and wished them much success.
“We are giving these students the opportunity to try and reach somewhere in life, and I really hope that these two young ladies … will make use of the opportunity they are receiving and that they make Statia proud,” Sneek-Gibbs said, adding that Spice Foundation is “always” willing to do whatever it can in the area of education.
