Updates

Partnership to Expand Post-High School Employment Opportunities

As 2023 begins, we want to share a few details of one of our newest projects involving a partnership with DP World.

DP World is an international shipping company that owns one of the largest shipping ports here in Ecuador. Shipping represents a large portion of the economy and there is a need for skilled port employees. DP World recently created a program that would send admitted high-school graduates to the best public university in Guayaquil to receive logistics training. Students from Mission Santa Maria’s programs have been given the chance to apply to this selective program. If admitted, the students would complete a two year university program and would have countless doors opened toward future employment.

As part of the partnership, Mission School graduates took a tour of DP World’s shipping port in Posorja. They spent the day hearing about what it is that actually happens at a port, the various components of the company, and what the two year university program would entail. The students heard from some of the leadership team and saw everything from the administrative offices to shipping containers coming into the port. 

After the tour, the young adults understood what it might be like to work at a port. They also understood the importance of English studies, as several members of the DP World team reiterated how important English language skills were to professional work in Ecuador. This is one of the many reasons Mission Santa Maria has invested so heavily in the English department at the Mission School. 

Many of the Mission School graduates were unaware of the importance shipping plays in Ecuador’s economy. The tour and presentation by DP World helped orient the graduates to all the employment opportunities available.

The next step for the graduates is to take several entrance exams for the program. Those that are selected will then move to Guayaquil to begin the two year university program. It is our hope that this partnership with DP World is the first of many focused on post-high school income generation.