DAVAO CITY – At least 320 low-income students are set to avail of free education at the local government-run City College of Davao (CCD), an official has said.
The school, set to open on August 7 for Academic Year 2023-2024, will cater to the "poorest of the poor" Dabawenyo students, CCD president Wenefredo Cagape said in a press briefing Thursday.
Cagape said the school would initially offer three courses.
“The onsite application will be on July 3 to 14. This is free education for qualified students, and they will not spend a single centavo on this as the city government subsidized the tuition of the students,” he added.
Cagape said they would limit the first batch of students to 320 due to the availability of the classrooms and staff.
Teachers have been hired and classrooms have all been prepared for the start of the school year.
Cagape said CCD would offer courses divided into two sections, such as the Bachelor of Early Childhood Education, Bachelor of Technical Vocational Teacher Education major in Heating, Ventilation, Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Technology, and Bachelor of Science in Entrepreneurship.
“As to the non-teaching personnel, we are already complete. We also have 11 teachers to cater to these students, but we are waiting for an additional five teachers to be hired,” he added.
Student applicants should be a Dabawenyo, with a recent senior high school report card or an appropriate Alternative Learning System (ALS) certificate; must have a certificate of good moral character; and a certificate of residency issued by the barangay.
Other requirements include the income tax return of both parents or a certificate of low income issued by the City Social Services and Development Office; and a certificate of belonging to an IP group issued by the Indigenous Peoples (IP) Mandatory Representative, if applicable.
In 2020, the City Council approved the establishment of the CCD to cater to the less privileged.
Based on the ordinance, those prioritized for admission are low-income students (with parents earning less than PHP6,000 annually), IP learners, working students, students from ALS, and students from the Late Afternoon Program. (PNA)
