8/12/2019 Dayrit

1/6

1

Network of Asia-Pacific Schools and Institutesof Public Administration and Governance (NAPSIPAG) Annual Conference 2005

BEIJING, PRC, 5-7 DECEMBER 2005

THEME:THE ROLE OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN BUILDING A HARMONIOUS SOCIETY

WORKSHOP ON ENLARGING CITIZEN PARTICIPATION AND INCREASING LOCALAUTONOMY IN ACHIEVING SOCIETAL HARMONY WORKSHOP

The Local Government Units Venture into thePhilippine Educational System: The Establishment

of Local Colleges and Universities

Nenita M. Dayrit , Ph.D.Faculty Member

University of the Philippines Extension Program in PampangaUniversity of the Philippines

8/12/2019 Dayrit

2/6

2

Introduction

On 10 October 1991, the Local Government Code (LGC) was signed into law. It was bruitedabout as the legacy of the then Philippine President Corazon C. Aquino. In her own words,

I consider the code as the linchpin of my political program.

The new law lays down the policies that seek to institutiona-lize democracy at the local level. It hopes, therefore, to allowour people the widest possible space, to decide, initiateand innovate, in building a free nation ( Pres. Aquinos mes-sage, Rules and Regulation Implementing LGC, 6 Feb. 1992).

The Implementing Rules and Regulations were completed in January 1992, the local government units(LGU) which are the province, cities, municipalities or municipal districts were given a free hand to chartthe course of their own development.

They shall enjoy the genuine and meaningful localautonomy to enable them to attain their fullest develop-ment as self reliant communities and make them moreeffective partners in the attainment of national goals(ART. 3. Declaration of Policy).

This devolution of some legislative and decision making power from the central to the local governmentwas received by the empowered people with excitation for the move transferred an extensive portion ofpower, authority, responsibilities, and resources of the national government in public works, socialwelfare, health services, and even education, to the local government. Recently, the seeming crisis in thecountrys educational system, which is the high cost of college education, has opened up new vistas forthe LGUs to consider: Why not build and run a quality college but charge reasonable fees?

The Local Government Units Put-up Local Colleges and Universities

The establishment of the Philippine educational system has always been the task of the national

government via legislation. State colleges and universities have been created in this manner; for instance,the University of the Philippines, the countrys national premier university which was founded by an act ofthe First Philippine Legislature. Even private educational institutions which are owned and operated byprivate individuals, families, corporations or religious congregation required licensing from the appropriategovernment agencies. Records show that there are now 1286 tertiary institutions created where 272 arepublic and 1,014 private institutions (2004 Philippine Statistical Yearbook, p. 10-20). While publicelementary and secondary schools offer fully or almost free education, this is not the case for post-secondary or tertiary education which remains for the children of the financially privileged few. Woe evento middle class families with several children enrolled in the college or tertiary level for definitely theirincome will not suffice! Going to college is a one-child-at-a-time culture for many Filipino families, if at allthey send one. Indeed, people empowerment is curtailed in that arena.

With the Local Government Code (Republic Act No. 7160), putting up a college or a university

that the LGU officials have envisioned to be very crucial adjunct to hasten the growth and development ofthe LGU became a simple endeavor through the Sanggunians (Local Legislative Bodies). Sections 458,447, and 468 of the LGC provide that a LGU may establish and operate vocational and technologicalschools and similar post-secondary institutions. College and university qualify clearly as post-secondaryinstitutions but do LGUs have the funds to establish one? If a LGU has the resource, it may also beallowed to charge minimal fees for tuition and miscellaneous expenses, with the approval of theCommission on Higher Education (CHED), the government agency tasked with tuition fee regulation.Given this latitude, several LGUs have made in-roads to the educational system. Filipinos being ardentbelievers in education as a means to alleviate social deprivations, always welcome new additions todiploma granting institutions, more so if these are intended for secondary school graduate who either

8/12/2019 Dayrit

3/6

8/12/2019 Dayrit

4/6

4

service. The physical plant and facilities will also be accredited; similarly with the library, curriculum,student services, laboratory and equipment, and the administration.

Community Colleges are not LCUs

Many Filipino educators still remember when Community Schools, which later evolved intoCommunity Colleges, were the toast of the educational system, and many still mistakenly equate LCUs

with Community Colleges. These were viewed as principal instruments for rural reconstruction akin tothe current concept of LCU as social institution that the society can avail of to improve itself. As an oldtimer in the education scene, the community school was launched by the Philippine Association of SchoolSuperintendents in 1949, officially adopted by the then Bureau of Public Schools and was variously calledlaboratory community school or laboratory barrio school, offering elementary and high school educationpractically gratis et amore (Bernardino, 1958, pp.1-67). Funds to support the school came from theDepartment of Education, then as now.

When the schools started to offer college course to accommodate their high school graduates,the schools meager budget almost snapped from the pressure. Add the creation of academic public highschools by congress, the popularity of community Schools or Colleges dimmed. There still exist 24community colleges in 14 different provinces of the country but these are slowly being superseded byLCUs or merged together to form a more stable institution. To illustrate, four (4) community colleges

namely Central Visayas Polytechnic College in Dumaguete City, Goni Memorial College in Bais City,Siaton Community College in Siaton and Mabinay Institute of Technology in Mabinay (all in CentralVisayas) are fused to form Negros Oriental State University by Republic Act No. 9299 (The Phil. Star, 16Oct. 2005, p. A-28). In whatever manner community colleges will end, flourish or perish, LCUs may beone better alternative to them.

The Case of Gordon College

Looking at an example of a local colleges accomplishments in equalizing access to education asan additional laurel to the triumphs of LGC is Olongapo Citys Gordon College (CG) in the province ofZambales. Olongapo City is considered one of the model cities in the whole country and was recognizedby the UNESCO in 1998 as one of the four Cities for Peace Awardees around the world. Olongapo haspioneered many programs to enhance the delivery of public services in Peace and Order, Cleanliness,Transportation, Skills Training and Education.

Olongapos role as host to the US Navy and now Subic Bay Freeport has spawned rapiddevelopment and growth in the area. Consequently, the vast job opportunities have presented a need forwell-trained and qualified workers. To initially address these labor demands, the City Governmenttogether with the Olongapo City Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) establishedOlongapo City Technical Education Center (OCTEC). However, the recent advancement of employmentopportunities from assembly type and skills based factory workers to highly specialized workers andincreased demand for health care professionals require for a higher institution of learning for learning.

Despite the existence of the various tertiary educational institutions in the City, majority of eligiblecollege students still travels to Manila, Baguio City and other neighboring provinces to study. The CityGovernment recognizes the inadequacy of courses and facilities available within the city, as well as theneed for affordable college education. The huge costs of tuition, boarding and lodging fees in other

places, drive the Citys leaders to actively address the need to provide quality education vis--vis betterservices and facilities at an affordable cost to the citizens of Olongapo City and residents of nearbyZambales and Bataan.

To address these requirements, the City Government of Olongapo under the leadership of MayorKatherine H. Gordon, pursuant to existing laws, set up an educational institution in the tertiary level knownas the Olongapo City Colleges (OCC). Sangguniang Panlungsod Resolution No. 18, Series of 1999authorized the City Government of Olongapo to create and operate the OCC and City Ordinance No. 09,Series of 1999 established OCC as a public higher educational institution. Sangguniang Panlungsod

8/12/2019 Dayrit

5/6

5

Resolution No. 42, Series of 2001 renamed OCC to Gordon College in recognition of the exemplarypublic service rendered by the Gordon family to the City of Olongapo.

Its initial academic programs were Accountancy and Computer Studies. In 2000, Nursing andMidwifery were added to its program; in 2003, Caregiver Training and Education courses were offered.From its initial commencement exercises up to the latest, 402 graduates had marched out from its portals.In the absence of tracer studies of alumni which have not yet been conducted, its success indicators may

well be its better than average passing rate in licensure examinations, several notches higher than thenational rates in Nursing and Midwifery and the continued influx of students (current enrollment: 1,490).

Being a local college, the government, power of management and conduct of operation of theschool is vested in a board of eleven (11) members which is collectively called as Board of Trustees.Table 2 gives a summary of the roster of management of GC.

Table 2College Officials of Gordon College

A. Board of Trustees (11 members)

Chairperson - City MayorPresident of GCVice-chairperson - Vice-Mayor

Chair of the Committee - Education - City Councilor- Labor and Employment - City Councilor3 Prominent Citizens

Faculty Association PresidentStudent Council PresidentCHED Regional Director

B. College Administration

College PresidentVice-President, Admin & FinanceVice- President, Academic AffairsVice-President, Student Welfare & ServicesVice-President, Research, Development, Extension & Community ServicesDeans

Any academic decision reached upon by the College Administration is subject to the approval ofthe BOT first, a situation that hopefully will not unnecessarily delay innovations, improvements and over-all development of the college.

As for its funding, Art. V Funding, of the Sangguniang Panlungsod provides that the CityGovernment shall appropriate funds necessary for the operation and maintenance of the College, inaddition to the tuition fee and other school fees which may be collected from the students. Scholarshipsand grants from benefactors and the Commission on Higher Education may also be availed of.

In spite of the presence of eleven (11) Colleges in Olongapo City, not to mention the nearbyeducational institutions in the region which numbered more than one hundred forty five (145) (1998-199CHEDRO III Bulletin p.8) the unfaltering decision to create and operate GC solely for the destitutestudents of Olongapo is one magnanimous, virtuous and noble offshoot of the Local Government Code to

achieve societal harmony.

Conclusion

Tertiary education, the level that will finally provide appropriate humanistic, scientific and practicalknowledge, inculcate values and attitude, and hone skills for nation building to post-secondary studentsremains an unrealizable dream if too costly for children of poor families who are many in the Philippines.The silver lining of hope for these children is the Local Government Codes venture into the Philippine

8/12/2019 Dayrit

6/6

6

educational system to establish quality local colleges and universities dovetailed to the pocketbooks ofthe marginalized but deserving sector of the local government unit.

References

Bernardino, Vitaliano. (1958). The Philippine Community School.Q.C.: Phoenix Press.

Cervantes, Ding. (2005). New State University put up in the Visayas. The Philippine Star. (p.A-28).

Commission on Higher Education. (1999). CHEDRO III Bulletin. 1998-1999..

Department of Interior and Local Government. (1992, January). Rules and regulationsimplementing the local government code of 1991.

Danao, Carolina. (2005, Feb.). The medium term higher education development plan. TheManila Bulletin.(pp. 11 and 20).

Gordon College. (2005). Flyer.

Gordon College (2005) Profile.

National Economics and Development Authority. (1999). Medium Term Philippine developmentplan: 1998-2004.

National Statistical Coordinating Board. (2004, Oct.) 2004 Philippine statistical yearbook, pp. 10-20 ff.

PLM News. (2004, September). http://www.plm.edu.ph/04Media/News/news2004/09sep/al.htm.

Resolution No. 18 Series. (1999). Sangguniang Panlungsod, Olongapo City Council.

Resolution No. 42 Series. (2002). Sangguniang Panlungsod, Olongapo City Council.

About the Author

Prof. Nenita M. Dayrit is a Filipino woman of many interests. She was an entrance scholar at theUniversity of the Philippines who majored in Biology in the undergraduate and graduate levels but took upPh. D in Educational management for her post graduate studies where she graduated summa cum laude.She handled varied positions in the academe: First at Holy Angel University in Angeles City, Philippines,her home town, where she rose to become the OIC of the Principals Office and second at AngelesUniversity, Angeles City, where she was Chairman of the Biological Sciences Department, AssistantDean of the College of Art and Sciences and College Secretary of the Graduate School.

When Nigeria, West Africa beckoned, she served for some years as Education Officer. In BruneiDarussalam she taught courses in science to secondary students. Three years ago, she was back in her

alma mater, the University of the Philippines as professor in Biology and Educational and PublicManagement in the Graduate Level. She plans to retire there.

Dr. Dayrit is happily married and lives with her husband in Angeles City. Their three children havesince flown from the nest, one as far of as Norway as a citizen, clearly her mothers son.