LEYTE division schools bagged all the titles under the public school category during the 20th Gawad Kalasag awarding rites in Tacloban City on July 31.

The winning elementary schools are Abuyog South Central School in Abuyog, first place; Cogon Elementary School in Palo, second place; and Tinambacan Elementary School in Jaro, third place.

The secondary schools are Bienvenido Guillera Celebre National High School in Jaro, first place; Barugo National High School in Barugo, second place; and Matlang National High School in Isabel, third place.

They received a plaque and cash prize of P50, 000, P30,000, and P15,000, respectively.

Leyte Schools Division Superintendent Ronelo Al Firmo lauded the winning schools and wished them luck for the national level contest.

Marilyn Siao, the assistant schools division superintendent, said the awards “proved the collective effort of the division personnel in the provision of technical assistance to the schools in consonance with the Department of Education strategic direction to giving premium to disaster readiness.”

“Unforeseen events occur at the least expected time and the preparedness of the school matters to lessen the impact of such situation,” added Edgar Tenasas, the assistant schools division superintendent.

He said it is an honor for the Leyte Division to have six schools acknowledged by the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Regional Office VIII.

“We look forward that this becomes an inspiration to other schools in Leyte that may also aspire to work for the same award in the future,” Tenasas said.

He also congratulated Karen Barril, the Leyte Division’s Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM) coordinator for her technical assistance to the winning schools.

OCD Deputy Administrator Nicanor Faeldon, OCD Regional Director Henry Anthony Torres, and other government officials led during the awarding ceremony to culminate National Disaster Resilience Month activities.

This year’s theme is on “Katatagan sa Kalamidad ay Makakamtan kapag Sapat ang Kaalamn sa Kahandaan.”

Gawad Kalasag, which started in 1998, recognizes best practices of DRRM among individuals, groups or institutions which have shown “extraordinary courage, heroism, and sacrifice in times of emergencies, be it natural or human-induced.” (SunStar Philippines)