“Mag-aral ng mabuti even though online o distance learning tayo ngayon dahil ito ang way para ma-achieve ang dreams natin.”
Such are the inspiring words of Mr. John Patrick G. Paneda, the current SBO Governor of the College of Education of the South La Union Campus when asked about his message to his schoolmates who are still struggling due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
With this thought in mind, the CE SBO initiated a project they call the “Load Amelioration Program” to help CE students this semester.
Just yesterday, Paneda and the rest of the officers announced through Facebook the list of grantees of the program for the month of February which include 15 students of the college who were randomly picked to become the first grantees.
The students in the list were selected out of over 400 who were identified by the class captains who they thought needed load assistance the most.
“Marami po kaming mga kaklaseng hirap sa online class,” Paneda said. This problem was voiced out in an online meeting that the CE SBO officers held in January and they came up with the idea of helping their classmates sustain their needs for internet accessibility through providing them load allowance.
“Sarili po naming pera,” Paneda added, when asked where they got their initial fund. He mentioned that he and the rest of the officers were able to pool Php 2250.00, which they equally divided among the grantees. But as they plan to continue the program until May or June, they have decided to ask for solicitations to gather more funds.
The CE SBO officers wanted to help all the students who needed load allowance. They also wished to provide mobile gadgets to students who badly need them if they have enough fund to give them. As they are also planning to hold an online event by the end of the semester for CE students, they might be able to achieve this if they have enough resources.
However, as of the moment, they still lack the necessary fund. “Pagpasensyahan ninyo po sana ang kaunting tulong na naibigay namin,” Paneda said, but he hopes to get more resources. In his FB post, he even wrote, “kung may mga gusto rin pong magpaabot ng tulong, malugod po namin itong tatanggapin.”
The CE SBO are set to select the next batch of grantees essay writer of the Load Amelioration Program for the month of March. (Abe Llarenas)