AMBASSADOR GAA SWEARS IN FIRST PHILIPPINE HONORARY CONSUL GENERAL TO
THE U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS
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In a letter dated 17 May 2010, Philippine Ambassador to the United States Willy C. Gaa conveyed to Dr. Vicente
Ferrer Poblete, Jr., M.D the U.S. State Department’s recognition of his appointment as the first Philippine
Honorary Consul General of the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Dr. Poblete graduated as a Doctor of Medicine from the University of the Philippines’ College of Medicine in
1960 and was very active in the field of medicine, serving as Chairman for different divisions in various
hospitals such as the R.L Schneider Hospital in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Asian Hospital and Medical Center in
the Philippines, and the Cardinal Santos Memorial Hospital in the Philippines.
Dr. Poblete has been awarded as Physician of the Year 2000 by the R.L. Schneider Regional Hospital at St.
Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, Diplomate and Fellow by the Philippine Obstetrical and Gynecological Society,
Rockefeller Foundation Fellow by the New York Hospital-Cornwell Medical Center, and National Institute of
Heart Fellow by Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas.
The assignment of Dr. Poblete as Philippine Honorary Consul General to the U.S. Virgin Islands will facilitate
the Philippine Government’s ability to effectively provide consular services and assistance to Filipino nationals
who are based in the U.S. Virgin Islands. END.
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Private school tuition fees generally stable - DepEd
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Pasig City (3 June) -- While there has been several applications for tuition fee increases by private schools,
this represents a small portion of all private schools nationwide, according to the Department of Education.
Education Secretary Mona D. Valisno said that reports from the various Regional Offices indicates that less
than 10% of the 9,995 private schools nationwide have applied for tuition fee increase. Thus, more than 90%
have no tuition fee increase this school year.
In Metro Manila alone, only 107 out of the 1,937 private elementary and secondary schools have applied for
tuition fee increase. In Central Visayas, less than 10% of all private schools applied for tuition fee increase.
This is the general trend nationwide.
"In fact, the number of applications for tuition fee increase in Metro Manila for example have actually declined
compared to last year, thus this is good news to parents. Last year 110 private schools in Metro Manila applied
for an increase, this year only 107 have applied for an increase," said Education Secretary Mona D. Valisno.
Since last year, the DepEd has been appealing to private school owners and operators to temper their
application for school fee increases considering the financial condition of many Filipino families.
"I am glad that private schools have generally heeded our call for responsible stewardship and sensitivity to
the plight of many parents. In fact, in the vast majority of private schools, we received no application for tuition
fee increase while in those that applied, we are ensuring compliance with applicable laws, rules and
regulations," Valisno added.
Valisno stressed that under the Education Act of 1982 all applications for increase in tuition and other school
fees are subject to the approval of DepEd, thus private schools must comply with the applicable DepEd Orders
on the matter before any increase may be imposed.
She directed all DepEd field offices to closely monitor any increase being proposed by private schools in order
to protect the interests of parents, students, and the general public.
Assistant Secretary Jonathan Malaya said that main reason cited by private schools in their application for
increase was the need to increase teacher salaries, higher operating cost, and the need to upgrade facilities.
He said that of the applications received from all over the country, most of the proposed increases were in the
6-8% range while the rest were only in the 1-5% range.
He noted that public school teachers were set to receive a new round of salary increases under the Salary
Standardization Law III so some private schools were also planning to increase the salaries of their teachers
to remain competitive.
He said that private schools must comply with the consultation requirement and the rule on the utilization of
increases before any application is approved. "The private school must submit documentation of the meeting
wherein parents, teachers, and students were consulted of the proposed increase, otherwise their application
will not be given due course," he said.
"The private school must also submit financial documents to show that existing funds are not enough to cover
the increase in salaries, etc," he added.
He urged the public to report to the DepEd Central Office or to any of its field offices any private school
imposing a tuition fee increase without prior approval.
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DepEd urges Congress to pass Special Education Act
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Pasig City (3 June) -- The Department of Education is urging the House of Representatives to finally ratify the
Special Education Act of 2010 after the Senate passed its version early this week.
"The passage of this bill will be the 14th Congress' parting gift and lasting legacy to the Filipino people since
this will finally give due attention to the education of 5.49 million children with special needs (CSN) and people
with disability (PWD) in our country," said Education Secretary Mona D. Valisno.
She said that only 2 percent of Filipino children with special needs are able to get support from the government
unlike in other countries where they get 100 % state support.
"We thank the Senate for including this bill in it's priority legislative agenda and it is our utmost hope that the
House of Representatives will concur with the Senate before they adjourn this friday," added Valisno.
Senators Miriam Defensor Santiago and Miguel Zibiri authored and sponsored the Senate measure, SB 2020,
while Reps. Pingoy and and Monica Louise Prieto authored and sponsored the House version, HB 6740. Both
houses have already passed their respective versions but the House has to concur with the Senate version for
the bill to become law.
She said that the passage of the law will pave the way for the creation of a new Bureau of Special Education
along with existing bureaus of elementary, secondary, and alternative learning. The law will also mandate the
creation of at least one (1) SPED center in each city and province of the country.
Usec. Jonathan Malaya, Assistant Secretary for Legislative Liaison, said that the new Bureau will be tasked to
formulate an appropriate curriculum and developmentally-suited programs to achieve functional literacy for all
children with special needs.
He said that under the bill, the DepEd will prepare a scheme for financial and medical assistance, including
nutritional programs, to poor but deserving children with special needs. It will also draw up incentives to
encourage private sector participation in the education and rehabilitation of children with special needs.
He said that the bill will be a quantum leap for the special education sector because a large majority of this
sector have not yet been provided with appropriate educational services.
Based on latest DepEd estimates, there are 5.49 million CSNs in the Philippines or 13 percent of the total
children population. Of this number, an estimated 4.2 million were PWDs (persons with disabilities) while1.27
million were gifted children.
Children with special needs (CSN) are those who are autistic, gifted or talented, mentally retarded, visually
impaired, hearing impaired, orthopedically or physically handicapped, learning disabled, speech defective,
children with behavior problems, and those children that encounter health problems under the formal
educational system.
A child is considered to have a need to train in a SPED center if he differs from the average child based on
mental characteristics, sensory abilities, neuromuscular or physical characteristics, social abilities, multiple
handicaps, or has a developmental lag.
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