THE City College of Davao (CCD) announced that it is now in its third year of operations, continuing to provide free tuition to students. For the first semester of Academic Year 2025-2026, the college has a total of 938 enrollees, which is expected to grow in the coming years.
Acting CCD President Dr. Wenefredo Cagape reported that this semester, 357 students are in their first year, 297 are in their second year, and 284 are in their third year.
Cagape added that they increased the first-year slots from the initially proposed 320 to 360, after noting that some students, for various reasons, do not proceed to higher levels.
The courses offered at CCD are:
Bachelor of Technical-Vocational Teacher Education, Major in Heating Ventilating and Air-Conditioning Technology (HVACRT) with 116 students from first to third year;
Bachelor of Technical-Vocational Teacher Education, Major in Computer Programming with 228 students from first to third year;
Bachelor of Early Childhood Education with 341 students from first to third year; and
Two Bachelor of Science programs from the first to the third year.
Since serving students from Indigenous Peoples (IP) communities is one of CCD’s priorities, the college now has a total of 368 IP enrollees.
He noted that CCD held its first ceremonial flag-raising on July 28, 2025, to officially mark the start of classes.
One of CCD’s key goals this year is to secure Institutional Recognition (IR) from the Commission on Higher Education (Ched). Once granted, CCD will receive full government funding for its operations, with Ched subsidizing tuition fees currently covered by the Davao City local government.
To obtain this recognition, CCD must appoint a president approved by Ched—a position that remains vacant. The qualifications for the post have been posted on CCD’s official Facebook page and the City Government of Davao’s Human Resource and Management Office page.
He also emphasized that IR is essential for opening new courses, allowing more people to benefit from CCD’s programs.
“Without a permanent president, we cannot yet apply for IR, and securing IR is crucial to offering additional courses,” Cagape said.
In terms of facilities, the college aims to complete within the year improvements to classrooms, electrical connections, the library, and the HVACRT workshop.
“Our operations are running smoothly now that we are in our third year. The issues we encountered before have already been resolved,” Cagape added.
The official stressed that they want the City College of Davao to continue so it can help more students, sustain its programs, and enhance its course offerings, giving students more options to choose from. JPC WITH REPORTS FROM PR