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Trinidad and Tobago Schools Reopen With Police, Repairs in Focus
By Aurax Radio | September 7, 2026 | 2 min read
Schools across Trinidad and Tobago reopen today, Sept. 7, for the 2026-27 academic year, with the government facing expectations that campuses are safe, functional and ready for students after an extensive vacation repair programme. The new term also begins with increased attention on school discipline, police involvement and parental responsibility as authorities seek to address fighting, vaping, marijuana possession and other behavioral problems.
Police maintain a School-Oriented Policing presence at 51 schools as Trinidad and Tobago begins the new academic year with a focus on student safety and discipline. File Image
The government’s Vacation School Repair Programme included about 359 schools, making it one of the largest such programmes in recent years. Work has included repairs and upgrades to school infrastructure, with the Education Ministry working with the National Maintenance Training and Security Company and school principals to prepare campuses for reopening. Education Minister Michael Dowlath said ahead of the opening that the government had set a clear target of having schools ready for Sept. 7, while MTS Chief Executive Officer Nicholas Kanhai said more than 100 projects had been completed by Sept. 4 and that no school identified by officials was expected to be prevented from reopening. Some work, however, was expected to continue after school hours and on weekends, meaning reopening day marks the point at which schools must be operational even where nonessential work remains.
School security is another major focus as students return. Deputy Commissioner of Police Junior Benjamin said the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service will maintain School-Oriented Policing at 51 schools, using information collected during the previous academic year to direct attention toward campuses where fighting, vaping and marijuana possession were more prevalent. The programme is intended to combine enforcement with engagement, including relationships between officers, principals, teachers, parents and students. The police presence comes as the government continues to address concerns about violence and misconduct in schools, with the police expected to respond when serious incidents occur while also working with schools to prevent problems from escalating.
Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar has placed much of the responsibility for improving student behavior on parents, teachers and students themselves. As schools reopen, she has urged teachers not to tolerate disruptive or disrespectful behavior and to send students who repeatedly misbehave home to their parents. She has also told educators that they should not be expected to accept abuse, intimidation or harassment and should contact the police when they are threatened or abused. Persad-Bissessar has urged students to attend classes, respect teachers and school staff, remain disciplined and take responsibility for their academic progress, while warning parents that failing to properly guide their children could eventually lead to more serious consequences, including encounters with the justice system.
The combination of infrastructure work, targeted policing and stronger calls for parental involvement reflects the government's broader effort to improve the environment in which students learn. With schools now open, parents and teachers will be able to assess whether the repair programme has delivered the expected improvements, while police and education officials will be under pressure to ensure that security measures protect students without disrupting the educational process. The start of the academic year therefore places attention not only on whether schools have reopened on schedule, but also on whether the physical and disciplinary problems identified before the reopening are being effectively addressed.
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