A new school may soon serve poor but deserving youth in Nueva Ecija as the House of Representatives has approved a measure on second reading that establishes a campus of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines in Cabiao town.
Rep. Magnolia Rosa Antonino of Nueva Ecija, principal author of House Bill 9017, said institutions of higher learning have grown in number significantly over the years, and majority of these institutions are concentrated in highly urbanized cities and the more affluent provinces in the country.
Antonino, vice chairperson of the House Committee on Appropriations and member for the majority bloc of the Committee on Basic Education, said most expensive universities with well-equipped facilities are located in the National Capital Region and its adjoining cities and provinces.
“This situation effectively limits the educational opportunities available for the poor but deserving students in remote municipalities, like the Municipality of Cabiao, who cannot afford the prohibitive private tertiary education offered in those schools,” Antonino said.
Through her proposal, she said the PUP-Cabiao Branch shall provide refuge for students from poor families living in this part of the country.
“It shall rid them of the collateral expenses from university education outside the province, such as boarding house rentals, food, transportation, and miscellaneous expenses,” she said.
“The bill, therefore, is a concrete gesture to the growing clamor of the people in the Municipality of Cabiao, Province of Nueva Ecija to have a quality and affordable tertiary educational institution accessible to all,” said Antonino.
The bill provides that PUP shall admit students to its Cabiao Campus who may avail of short-term technical-vocational courses, undergraduate, and graduate programs.
The university shall offer areas of specialization as its Board of Regents deems necessary, to respond to the human resource development needs not only of the Province of Nueva Ecija but also of the Central Luzon region.
Moreover, the bill mandates the PUP to undertake research and extension services, and provide progressive leadership in its areas of specialization, including the offering of graduate degrees under the PUP Open University System.
The measure stipulates that a Campus Administrator shall head the PUP-Cabiao Campus. He or she shall be appointed by the Board of Regents, upon the recommendation of the search committee and its president.