THE City Government of Bacolod and the Department of Education (DepEd) are now preparing the school facilities for the possible resumption of face-to-face classes in 2021.
Councilor Renecito Novero, chairperson of the City Council committee on education, said yesterday that Mayor Evelio Leonardia Leonardia instructed him to hold a meeting with the DepEd officials in Bacolod to clarify the said plan.
He said that during their meeting last week, Gladys Amylaine Sales, officer-in-charge Assistant Division Superintendent (ASDS), informed them that if the face-to-face classes will push through by mid of February next year, it will start first from the senior high, then the junior high will follow and after that, the elementary.
“There’s also the possibility to have face-to-face classes for kindergarten, but it’s not yet final because it will also depend on the decision of President Rodrigo Duterte if he will allow the face-to-face classes next year,” he added.
This, after some senators earlier urged the DepEd to consider resuming face-to-face classes in safe communities as they warned the country was on the path to suffering a serious education gap.
Novero said Mayor Leonardia instructed him to prepare the quarantine facilities in case the face-to-face classes will be pushed through.
“If the classes resume in senior high, the city’s quarantine facilities will also reduce because for now we are using some of the public schools as our quarantine facility,” he said.
He added currently, the city has more than 1,000 quarantine facilities and if the face-to-face classes will resume, it will reduce to 500 bed capacity.
Novero disclosed that the city government has already improved the evacuation center in Barangay Vista Alegre to be used as a quarantine facility, if it is needed.
Novero along with DepEd will hold another meeting on December 10 to discuss its preparation and the Local School Board's budget for 2021.