• THERESA MAE DULMAN
A total of 9,136 school bags were distributed to Bacolodnon students of Negros Occidental High School Aug. 17.
Bacolod Mayor Greg Gasataya said they will push for this yearly distribution to the school, even if NOHS is under the jurisdiction of the DepEd Schools Division of Negros Occidental.
Gasataya said more than 90 percent of NOHS students are Bacolodnons.
“It is proper and fitting that they (NOHS students) be included among those who receive assistance from the city. We will make the necessary coordination so they can receive the same at the start of the school year, similar to other government schools,” he said.
This is the first time that the Bacolod local government provided such assistance to NOHS that was initially excluded from the city’s school supply rollout because it is not under the Schools Division of Bacolod City.
Bacolod allocated P90 million from the Special Education Fund to purchase and distribute for free school bags, supplies, and PE uniforms to public school students this academic year.
The initiative benefited over 113,000 learners, from kindergarten to high school, across Bacolod. | TMD
