{"id":82698,"date":"2026-02-28T16:30:42","date_gmt":"2026-02-28T19:30:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/?p=82698"},"modified":"2026-03-05T16:39:14","modified_gmt":"2026-03-05T19:39:14","slug":"40-years-of-cieps-an-ahead-of-its-time-education-policy-that-has-resisted-decades-of-dismantling-attempts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rioonwatch.org\/?p=82698","title":{"rendered":"Meet the CIEPs: In Rio de Janeiro, An Ahead-of-Its-Time Education Policy Turns 40 Having Resisted Decades of Dismantling"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"CIEP<\/a>
CIEP 172 \u2013 Nelson Rodrigues, in Comendador Soares, a neighborhood in the municipality of Nova Igua\u00e7u. These educational facilities were created to be an integral part of their home communities.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Clique aqui para Portugu\u00eas<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

2025 marked four decades since the founding of the Integrated Centers for Public Education (CIEP<\/a>s), which were created to revolutionize public education policy in the state of Rio de Janeiro. Criticized by the elite at the time for their \u201chigh cost\u201d for offering quality full-time public education<\/a> for Black, marginalized and low-income populations, CIEPs were accused of political populism. Originally conceived by Governor Leonel Brizola<\/a> and educator and then vice-governor Darcy Ribeiro<\/a>, with architectural design by Oscar Niemeyer<\/a>, over time several CIEPs were dismantled<\/a>, especially after being municipalized. Forty years after the project\u2019s inauguration, what lessons and reflections can be drawn from their history?<\/em><\/p>\n

Though CIEPs Impressed Governors and Presidents, the Original Project Was Stripped of Its Character<\/h3>\n

To grasp the importance of this public policy, numerous subsequent administrations\u2014both right- and left-wing\u2014drew inspiration from the management model of the \u201cbrizol\u00f5es,\u201d as these public education centers were known. CIEPs were even used to restore the credibility of a federal government that needed to recover from a grueling political crisis that dragged on for six months. This took place during the United Nations Conference on the Environment and Development (UNCED, also known as the Earth Summit<\/a>), held in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992, which brought together representatives from 178 countries.<\/p>\n

At the time, then president Fernando Collor de Mello<\/a>\u2014on a slippery slope that would ultimately lead to his impeachment<\/a>\u2014was visited by Governor Leonel Brizola and Darcy Ribeiro. On the agenda was the possibility of federalizing CIEPs and replicating their bold architectural design, which included a covered multi-sports court, a swimming pool and three meals served daily to students experiencing socioeconomic vulnerability.<\/p>\n

This story has several versions. The most recent one appears in the documentary The Hunter of Maraj\u00e1s<\/a><\/em>, which recounts the rise and fall that shaped the head of state’s brief administration. According to the film, Collor was reportedly impressed by the proposal but, as a representative of the right, could not move forward with a project of such magnitude\u2014especially one put forward by Rio de Janeiro\u2019s governor, who was openly aligned with left-wing politics.<\/p>\n

In 1990, using the CIEP model as a reference, however, Collor\u2019s government launched the federal Integrated Centers for Child and Adolescent Care (CIACs<\/a>), a more \u201cgeneric\u201d version of CIEPs. The initiative sought to provide comprehensive support to primary school students experiencing socioeconomic vulnerability, including full-time elementary education, healthcare and introductory job training programs. Despite the ambitious goal of building 5,000 units nationwide, only a small number were completed. When Itamar Franco<\/a> took office, the program\u2019s name was changed to Comprehensive Child Care Centers (CAICs). Of the 5,000 originally planned, only 270 were ultimately built.<\/p>\n

In 1995, President Fernando Henrique Cardoso suspended the construction of 178 CAIC units that had already been contracted<\/a>. Cardoso argued that the CAIC program placed excessive emphasis on large-scale infrastructure and was grounded in a welfare-based model. He maintained that the construction cost of each unit was high\u2014around R$2.5 million at the time\u2014and that the focus should instead be on \u201cfunding, staffing and training\u201d education professionals rather than on erecting buildings.<\/p>\n

When asked about the ideological and party-political disputes that stripped the original CIEP project of its defining characteristics, Waldeck Carneiro, a professor of Education at the Fluminense Federal University (UFF<\/a>) and general coordinator of the Rio de Janeiro State Education Front (FEERJ), said this reveals much about Brazil\u2019s difficulty in maintaining and continuing to improve successful State policies.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring the first year of Brizola\u2019s administration, ten CIEPs were inaugurated each month. At that time, around 40 percent of the state\u2019s budget was allocated to education.\u201d \u2014 Waldeck Carneiro<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"Waldeck<\/a>
Waldeck Carneiro: Brizola, the governor who co-conceived the CIEP, \u201cwas one of those most hated by the military dictatorship.\u201d Photo: Fabio Leon<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Structuring Education Initiatives to Break the Cycle of Violence<\/h3>\n

The first CIEP opened on May 8, 1985, in Catete<\/a>, a neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro\u2019s South Zone<\/a>, near the Santo Amaro favela<\/a>. This was the same community where, on June 7, 2025, the Special Operations Battalion (BOPE<\/a>) carried out a raid<\/a> during a June June festival<\/a> celebration, killing 24-year-old Herus Guimar\u00e3es Mendes with two shots.<\/p>\n

The report Education Under Siege: Schools in the Greater Rio Area Impacted by Armed Violence<\/em><\/a>, released at the end of May 2025, presents detailed findings on this issue. Conducted collaboratively by UNICEF<\/a>, the Fogo Cruzado Institute<\/a> and the Fluminense Federal University\u2019s Study Group on New Illegalities (Geni\/UFF<\/a>), it found that 58.6% of schools<\/a> in Rio de Janeiro are located in areas controlled by armed groups. Over the course of one year, the survey recorded over 4,400 shootings in the vicinity of these schools.<\/p>\n

William Cruz, one of the coordinators of the Baixada Fluminense Popular Education Network<\/a>, emphasizes that public education can serve as a guiding force to break the cycle of poverty and give youth in favelas a better chance at employment opportunities.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s important to say that breaking the cycle of criminality won\u2019t happen through policing. The social mechanisms capable of changing levels of violence and crime lie in education, culture, healthcare and social services. In this sense, the last quality structural project in education in Rio de Janeiro were the CIEPs under Brizola. That, to me, is the path for those who want to break the cycle of violence.\u201d \u2014 William Cruz<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The First CIEP: Innovative Architecture, Robust Infrastructure and Food Security<\/h3>\n

Named CIEP 01 – Tancredo Neves<\/a>, the first CIEP bears the name of the first civilian-elected president during Brazil\u2019s re-democratization<\/a>. The complex consisted of a main classroom block, built along the edge of the sidewalk, with the sports court to the left and the library set back to the right. Its imposing scale was striking, as was the openness of the ground floor, with pillars lifting the building off the ground. Unlike any other school building at the time, it asserted itself as a landmark in the cityscape<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n
\n

 <\/p>\n

\n
<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
Ver essa foto no Instagram<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Um post compartilhado por Waldeck Carneiro (@waldeckcarneiro)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n