It was with great joy and satisfaction that I launched, on May 25, during the 15th Brazilian Congress on Private Higher Education (CBESP), my second book of collected articles: Stronger Education. The book is a collection of 100 articles published in news outlets and on the ABMES Blog on the various aspects of higher education in the country, particularly those related to the private sector of education.

With the articles divided into five broad areas (Curricula and Educational Methodologies; Educational Management; Public Policy; Sectoral Representation; and Innovation and Technology) and arranged chronologically, the reader is provided with a broad overview of the direction higher education has taken over the past two years, as well as the challenges facing the academic community, public administrators, and education policymakers.

For example, in the chapter on educational curricula and methodologies, the articles cover everything from practical issues—such as hybrid education and entrepreneurship in the school setting—to more subjective, yet no less important, aspects, such as overcoming prejudice against distance learning and the school environment as a setting for learning about happiness.

With regard to management, the texts cover topics that are part of every school administrator’s day-to-day work: dropout rates, student recruitment, teacher recognition, social responsibility, mental health, and others. In the chapter on public policy, key points include tax reform, the need for a new FIES program, and the obstacles and progress related to assessment and regulation.

Finally, the last two chapters focus on ABMES’s activities, highlighting its importance as the leading representative body for the private higher education sector, as well as the importance of innovation and technology in transforming the teaching and learning process to better meet the global needs of the 21st century.

Thus, although each text tells its own story, the sum of everything narrated in those hundred articles leaves us in no doubt that we have done a great deal for Brazilian higher education. This does not mean, however, that we are satisfied. We know there is still much to be done, and that motivates us to keep moving forward.

"Strength" is a feminine noun associated with characteristics such as vigor and resilience, generally attributed to those who stand out, those who don’t give up, and winners. Our goal is for education to be as strong as it deserves to be and as it should be. Brazil needs to grow stronger as a nation, but that will only happen when we have a stronger education system. And we will not rest until that becomes a reality.

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*This text does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bett Brasil.

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