The Department of Education (DepEd) recently turned over new school buildings to two elementary schools in Hindang and Sta. Fe towns in Leyte.
Himokilan Elementary School in Himokilan Island, Hindang town and San Miguelay Elementary School in Sta. Fe town, both in the province of Leyte, are recipients of the Last Mile School Program of DepEd.
Undersecretary Epimaco Densing III, in charge of the School Infrastructure and Facilities (SIF), led the ceremonial turnover of the school buildings with Leyte DepEd School Division Superintendent Mariza Magan, on Thursday.
San Miguelay has 74 students from Kinder to Grade 6.
‘This classroom is a symbol of hope that we still have time to reverse the declining trend of education in the Philippines, the crisis in education,’ Densing said.
The new school building in Sta. Fe, costing PHP13,379.302.42, has two classrooms and two comfort rooms. It is equipped with 40 solar panels.
‘It will take years to solve this crisis, and to be able to solve this, it should be all h
ands on deck. The support of community, of parents, is also needed and not just the government alone solving this education crisis that we are facing,’ he added.
Densing emphasized that even if they construct school buildings every day, it would not be enough to address the increasing number of students needing better places to study.
DepEd said it is short of 165,000 classrooms all over the country.
The Last Mile Schools Program aims to address the gaps in resources and facilities of schools in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas and transform makeshift classrooms into standard ones.
The inauguration in Leyte is part of the nationwide simultaneous turnover of nine school buildings in Southern Leyte, Sorsogon, and Catanduanes provinces.
Source: Philippines News Agency