Sought to address the obvious gap by converting a classroom into fully functional and complete electrical laboratory, the local government of IGACOS, Department of Education XI, and the donor, Davao Light with its social development arm, the Aboitiz Foundation, Inc., signed the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) of the Electrical Laboratory (E.Lab) Project on July 26, 2022, witnessed by the Department of Education- Division of IGACOS and Samal Senior High School.
Samal Senior High School, the only senior high school offering Electrical Installation and Maintenance (EIM) on the island, will have two (2) classrooms converted into E.Lab installed with necessary fixtures and/or furniture to be used as classroom and workshop area.
Engr. Rodger S. Velasco, the President and Chief Operating Officer of Davao Light and Power Co., Inc., said that it is part of their corporate social responsibility to extend their help to the community and equipping public schools with standard facilities to implement hands-on learning for students who opt to pursue careers in line with electrical work will surely be of great help to the students."…we have been supporting schools that offer Technical-Vocational Livelihood (TVL) education since the K-12 program of the Department of Education started because we believe in the importance of our youth and the difference that it will create and can do to make our world a better place. And now we are happy to finally extend our support here in Samal, " he added.
Furthermore, City Mayor Al David T. Uy expressed his gratitude to the donors for their unending assistance to the island's public schools.He also made mention that this is not the first time that the city has received a donation from the corporation. "…hopefully this will be the beginning or the continuation of the partnership that we have with the Aboitiz Foundation, and definitely this will be a big help to the future of the island. Syempre ang kabataan ang pag-asa ng ating bayan and rest assured that the city will always be there to help in any way we can, especially that we are not out of the woods yet, naa pa ang pandemic…" Mayor Uy stated.
Looking at the utmost importance that the ELab will bring, Regional Director of the DepEd XI, Dr. Allan G. Farnazo, aspires that through the skill that students will acquire, Samal will serve as a model in the region, or even in the country, showing education towards immersion and ending with employment.
The school is now on a challenge to encourage more students to enroll in the course so that Davao Light and Aboitiz Foundation can give more of their help, such as providing more training facilities to the school. (CIO-IGACOS/novycreta/photos:Christian juntong)