Lack of funds has prompted the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) to suspend the scholarship application process for incoming first-year college students.
“The suspension is an offshoot of budget inadequacy in the Commission’s FY 2022 budget for StuFAPs (Student Financial Assistance Programs),” CHED said in its Facebook post.
In a memorandum dated February 21, CHED Chairperson Prospero de Vera III instructed the commission’s regional offices to disseminate the information on the matter to avoid the spread of fake news and confusion among students who are interested in applying.
Meanwhile, the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) reminds all educational institutions to not burden parents, as well as their minor children, with additional costs and requirements as the country’s educational institutions prepare for the return in-person classes.
ARTA director general Jeremiah Belgica said the agency supported the Department of Education’s (DepEd) position that vaccination of students, though encouraged, was not mandatory.
In other words, children are not required to get the vaccine before being able to attend their classes.
Schools, colleges, and other educational institutions must be reminded that the students’ parents are the ones to decide on whether they will have their children vaccinated against COVID-19 or not, ARTA said.
The agency will continue to monitor the situation on the ground to ensure that no educational institution is forcing students to submit additional requirements.
Violators may be held liable under Republic Act No. 11032 or the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act of 2018.
“Two years since the COVID-19 pandemic struck the country, we at ARTA are happy to see the Filipino youth now able to physically attend their classes. I am calling on my fellow public servants as well as private stakeholders to make this period a safe, enjoyable, and comfortable time for our students by not imposing undue regulatory burden on them. Let us not further hamper the education of Filipino youth by subjecting them to red tape,” Belgica said.