The city government of Makati has started distributing free school supplies and uniforms to students in all public elementary and high schools in the city in time for the opening of classes next month.
“We have scheduled the distribution of free school supplies and uniforms before the opening of classes in June. We want our students to be equipped with the things they need as early as their first day in school,” Mayor Abigail Binay said.
Binay said the government’s Brigada Eskwela program was an opportune time for the distribution since it brings together students and their parents, along with other volunteers from various sectors, to conduct clean-up and repair of school facilities in preparation for the opening of classes.
Brigada Eskwela is an annual school maintenance activity to help ensure that public elementary and high schools nationwide will be ready in time for the school opening.
Teachers, parents, pupils, civic groups, volunteers and even police and military personnel members picked up brooms, paint brushes, washed walls and started cleaning the surroundings and classrooms in public schools nationwide.
This year’s theme “Pagkakaisa Para sa Handa, Ligtas at Matatag na Paaralan Tungo sa Magandang Kinabukasan”, aims to bring together all education stakeholders to participate and contribute their time, effort, and resources in helping schools become conducive to learning, in time for the opening of the school year.
“I encourage students to participate in Brigada Eskwela this week. This way, they will be able to help get their classrooms ready, and at the same time receive their free uniforms and school supplies,” Mayor Abby said.
This year, the City of Makati has allocated almost P700 million for its Project FREE (Free Relevant Excellent Education) which provides Makati public school students, from preschool to senior high, with free school supplies and ready-to-wear school uniforms.
Pupils in Kinder up to Grade 2 will each receive five fat pencils, five writing pads, and 10 writing notebooks.
Students in Grades 3 to 12 will each receive five regular pencils, five ball-pens, five intermediate pads, and 10 composition notebooks. Students in Grades 7 to 12 will also receive one Mathematics notebook each.
Kinder, Grade 1, and Special Education learners will also receive school bags from the city.
For their ready-to-wear uniforms, students in Kinder up to Grade 12, and SPED learners will each be provided with two sets of polo and pants for boys and two sets of blouse and skirt for girls. Each student will also get a pair of black leather shoes, two T-shirts and one jogging pants as PE uniform.
Students are also set to receive their student handbooks, rubber shoes, raincoats and boots, and dental and hygiene kits during the early part of the school year.
Based on last year’s enrolment, DepEd-Makati has projected some 90,042 enrollees in the city’s public schools for the school year 2018-2019. These consist of around 49,958 in elementary and 40,084 in high school.
As of March 2018, data from DepEd-Makati show that the city had a total of 80,139 enrollees last school year, composed of 47,867 students in elementary and 32,272 students in high school.
Meanwhile, during the early school registration conducted last January 27 to February 28, some 13,969 public school students have been enrolled.
These early school registrants consist of 2,974 incoming kinder 1 pupils, 4,572 incoming Grade 1 pupils, 5,803 incoming Grade 7 students, and 620 incoming Grade 11 students. Students from all other grade levels are automatically moved to the next grade level without the need for enrolment.