The Department of Education (DepEd) spokesperson Michael Poa said the agency wants to remove COVID-19 quarantine facilities from campuses before the school opens on Aug. 22.
Poa, quoted in an ABS-CBN report said the DepEd was coordinating with local government units (LGUs) to “clear out” quarantine facilities ahead of the start of School Year 2022-2023.
“We are trying to coordinate with the LGUs to make sure that we clear out these quarantine facilities so we can go back to schools on Aug. 22,” Poa said in a briefing.
But the DepEd official has yet to disclose how many schools were still serving as quarantine facilities.
Poa said the DepEd was also coordinating with LGUs to ensure that there were clinics and health facilities in every school, especially those in remote areas, the report said.
Earlier, education advocacy groups called for the need for health facilities in every public school, especially since in-person classes would resume at full capacity starting in November, despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
The government’s Brigada Eskwela program has included sanitation facilities as part of health efforts amid the pandemic. Brigada Eskwela is an annual program that engages education stakeholders to contribute their time and resources in preparing public schools for the opening of classes
As of Tuesday morning, some 13 million learners have enrolled in elementary and secondary schools, according to DepEd data, the report said.
