President Danilo Medina was in La Romana today, 17 August 2015, for the traditional first day of school ceremony. He attended the Profesora Rita Elena Mendez Elementary School located at Calle Principal in La Caleta. The event marked the start of classes for around 2.5 million students in public and private schools nationwide. Of these students, more than 1.9 million attend public schools. Education Minister Carlos Amarante Baret gave the opening speech at the ceremony. The Ministry reported that this year around 850,000 students have been enrolled in the all-day school programs (8 to 4pm) that include breakfast, lunch and snack as well as sports.