The Regional Secretary for Education and Culture emphasised the "importance" of the EPIS project, an initiative promoted by the Association of Entrepreneurs for Social Inclusion to combat school failure. This project "deals with students at school" as well as with "families who are not in school."

"We are all aware that the scourge of school failure must be fought on multiple fronts. This fight takes place in a first instance at school and within the classroom. However, we need to extend the fight beyond the school walls in order to involve the society," said Avelino Meneses to journalists in Lagoa.

Speaking at the end of a meeting with mediators of EPIS project on the island of São Miguel, Avelino Meneses stressed that many of the problems detected at school "have their roots in a community environment, namely in a family environment."

Hence, the Regional Secretary defended that we need to establish "a very strong consortium between school, students and family," because only then we will be able to overcome this problem, whose solution "does not have immediate effects."

The EPIS project is primarily intended to fight against school failure by promoting mediation and non-academic training. As for the results of this programme, which covers eight schools on S. Miguel and Terceira in the current school year, Avelino Meneses considered that "we cannot yet draw definitive or solid conclusions."

Nevertheless, the Regional Secretary for Education and Culture pointed out that the work already developed show "an effective improvement of school results."

Nevertheless, the government official reminded the Government's goal to reduce the "scourge" of school failure will not be "achieved in a month, a year or even in two or three years."

Avelino Meneses also admitted that, according to the evolution of the project, this initiative may be extended to more regional schools, as it happened with the "Fénix" programme.