Education in the Caribbean Netherlands
Education establishments in the Caribbean Netherlands (Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba) have formed part of the Dutch education system since 1 January 2011. This has led to new policy and changes in legislation, for example around administrative agreements aimed at improving education and Inspectorate reviews focusing on educational quality.
Six themes
At the request of the minister of Education, the Education Council of the Netherlands is preparing an advisory report focusing on education in the Caribbean Netherlands. In compiling this report, the Education Council is working in collaboration with Island Committees of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba to explore the functioning of education in the Caribbean Netherlands and how well embedded it is in the Dutch education system. This is being done on the basis of six themes.
The themes are: multilingualism, education provision, inclusive education, transitions in education, administrative capacity and teaching staff.
Publication of the report ‘Education in the Caribbean Netherlands’ is scheduled to take place in the first quarter of 2026.
Working method
The Education Council will work with an Island Committee for each island to determine the content and process for the island-specific chapters in the report. The members of the Committees contribute their experience, expertise and perspective in a personal capacity.
Island Committee Bonaire
|
Anoek Hansen |
Director-administrator |
Expertisecenter Onderwijs en Zorg (EOZ) |
|
Liset Wolf |
School principal vocational education |
Scholengemeenschap Bonaire (SGB) |
|
Melanie Pop |
Teacher |
Kolegio Rayo di Solo |
|
Nilva Wout |
School board member |
Stichting Birgen Maria Onderwijs |
|
Tariq Nahr |
Teacher unit Liseo |
Scholengemeenschap Bonaire (SGB) |
|
Cor van Montfort |
Committee Chair |
Onderwijsraad |
|
Talitha Stam |
Project leader |
Onderwijsraad |
Island Committee Saba
|
Annelies Buurmeijer |
Director |
Expertise Center Education Care (EC2) |
|
Ildefon Verberne |
School principal |
Sacred Heart Primary School (SHS) |
|
Jessica Besselink |
School principal |
Saba Comprehensive School (SCS) |
|
Marlon Sitladin |
Teacher |
Saba Comprehensive School (SCS) |
|
Camille Fahey-Blackman |
Teacher |
Sacred Heart Primary School (SHS) |
|
Daisy Mertens |
Committee Chair |
Onderwijsraad |
|
Talitha Stam |
Project leader |
Onderwijsraad |
Island Committee Sint Eustatius
|
Fleur Lagcher |
School principal |
Gwendoline van Puttenschool (GvP) |
|
Javanca Merkman |
School board member |
Governor de Graaff Primary School |
|
Sharon van Putten-Blair |
Teacher |
Seventh Day Adventist School (SDA) |
| Tamara Richardson | Teacher | Bethel Methodist School (BMS) |
|
Rhea Courtar |
Care coordinator |
Golden Rock School |
|
Pieter Huisman |
Committee Chair |
Onderwijsraad |
|
Talitha Stam |
Project leader |
Onderwijsraad |