In San Pedro City, students are ensured of assistance from the local government, from kindergarten all the way to college.
As students all over the Philippines resumed their classes last June 16, the city government led by Mayor Art Mercado announced that it will continue with its landmark programs that ensure the welfare of its students.
Continuing a long-standing tradition that began in 2022 with the much-vaunted distribution of free school uniforms and school supplies every school year – and continuing with the expansion of scholarship programs – Mercado has made it a mission to ensure that parents in San Pedro City will be relieved somewhat of the burden of providing for their children’s education.
“Iba ang saya kapag nakikita mong unti-unti nang naaabot ng kabataan ang kanilang mga pangarap. Alam namin na hindi madali ang pag-aaral, kaya ginagawa natin ang lahat ng ating makakaya upang suportahan ang ating mga kabataan,” the city mayor said in a social media post.
Financial assistance
Last June 18, Mercado led the distribution of financial assistance under the San Pedro City Scholarship Program (SPeCS) to beneficiary-students at SM City San Pedro.
According to the data provided by the San Pedro City Education Office, a total of 1,755 students representing the years 2020 to 2023 received financial assistance during the payout.
This does not include the 2,365 students under Batch 2024 who had already received financial assistance for the 1st semester last March, Jaime Ambayec, head of the San Pedro City Education Office, told OpinYon Laguna.
Expansion of scholarship program
The city mayor himself noted during the event that the number of student-beneficiaries under the SPeCS rose by 300 percent during the first three years of his term as mayor.
“In fact, batay po sa survey na kinomisyon natin, itong scholarship program ang lumabas na isa sa mga pinaka-popular na programa ng ating city government,” he bared.
“So asahan po ninyo na sa aking pangalawang termino ay mas dadami pa po ang ating scholars and hopefully, this year, maisama na rin po natin ang mga senior high school student and next year, ang mga junior high school student, sa ating programa.”
For Mercado, the smiles on the faces of the students and the parents who attended the payout are well worth the funds the city government pours on the SPeCS and other programs it has put in place to support San Pedro City’s education sector.
"[Ipinapangako ko po] na gagawin ng city government of San Pedro ang ating makakaya upang ang lahat ng mga kabataan dito sa San Pedro ay mabigyan ng magandang edukasyon at makapagtapos hindi lamang ng high school kundi pati na rin ng kolehiyo," the mayor pledged in his speech to the student-beneficiaries.
#WeTakeAStand #OpinYon #OpinYonNews #SanPedroLagunaLGU