The Baguio City Council is poised to approve on first reading a proposed ordinance seeking to provide monthly allowance to qualified K-12 students in public elementary and secondary schools and kindergartens in the city.
Under the proposed ordinance, 200 screened students shall receive a monthly allowance for the entire school year. Qualified students from Kindergarten to Grade Six shall receive P1,500.00 monthly while qualified students from Grade 7 to Grade 12 shall receive P500.00 monthly.
An amount of at least P2 million shall be appropriated every year under the general fund of the city government for the purpose.
The proposed ordinance is anchored to the principle that education is for all.
Authored by Vice Mayor Faustino Olowan, Councilor Levy Lloyd Orcales, and Councilor Vladimir Cayabas, the proposed measure seeks to lessen absences and dropouts among the students in the city.
Based on the records of the Schools Division of Baguio City, at the end of the School Year 2017-2018 and School Year 2018-2019, there were 122 and 81 dropouts respectively.
According to a study conducted by Nasitem in 2015, the main cause of absenteeism among Baguio learners is financial constraints. In another study conducted by Acong in 2015, it was concluded that adequacy of educational materials sustains or improves a learner’s attendance
The proposed ordinance cited the Citizen Satisfaction Index Survey (2017) conducted in the city which revealed that Baguio students do not have adequate access to scholarships and financial assistance programs.
The proposed ordinance aims to address the alarming dropout rates by granting financial assistance to qualified students to support their daily school expenses.
Once enacted, the ordinance shall be known as the Baguio City Gawad Lingap Program of 2021.
The program shall apply to qualified students enrolled in any public elementary and secondary schools and kindergartens in the city.
The qualifications of beneficiaries are as follows:
must be enrolled for the ensuing school year in any public school under the Schools Division of Baguio City;
must belong to indigent families (parents joint annual income must not exceed P150,000.00 monthly);
must not have an existing scholarship grant from any agency, company, and/or individual;
must not have intentions to enroll in schools outside Baguio City;
must not incur a number of absences that is 5% (or higher) of the total number of school days for the ensuing school year;
must have passing remarks in all subjects in every grading period; and
must be actively involved in all curricular and cocurricular activities of DepEd and the City Government of Baguio.
The proposed measure is set to be approved on first reading in the city council’s regular session on October 18, 2021.**Jordan G. Habbiling
