V.I. Department of Education officials are speaking out against a robbery that occurred over the recent Carnival weekend at the Career, Technical & Adult Education offices located on St. Thomas.
Taken during the break-in were two of the office’s first-floor air conditioning units, along with the associated copper piping. State Career, Technical & Adult Education Director Eduardo Corneiro discovered the theft Monday as employees returned to work and spent the day working with police on a report.
“It is always disappointing when incidents such as these occur,” Corneiro said Tuesday. “It goes without saying that when someone attacks Education, they also attack our children and all those who benefit from our programs. It’s senseless for one person’s small gain to affect so many people.”
Acting Education Commissioner Donna Frett-Gregory added that the theft of any equipment from DOE facilities just puts more strain on the Department’s already tight financial budget.
“For the Department to be placed in a position of now having to replace this equipment because of one person’s selfish actions is just unacceptable,” Frett-Gregory said. “Our focus needs to be on serving the needs of our students, and we’re asking our stakeholders to help us. Please don’t stand by and allow these incidents to continue – report any information you might have to the proper authorities. The Department’s mission is to deliver a high quality education to the students of this territory, but that goal is harder to achieve when our resources continue to be depleted by incidents such as these.”
