QC, PLM forge pact on open university

The Quezon City government, in close coordination with Barangay Kamuning, has entered into a memorandum of agreement with the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM) for the offering of baccalaureate courses to city hall employees and barangay officials under an open university program.

Under the scheme, qualified applicants will be allowed to pursue their college education for a one-year program, which could lead to a bachelor’s degree in public administration.

To qualify, employee-applicants should have rendered at least two years of service in the government while barangay officials, whether elected or appointed, must be at least a high school graduate.

Mayor Feliciano Belmonte Jr. described the tie-up between the city government, Barangay Kamuning and the PLM as vital in the effort of professionalizing the city’s workforce.

Apart from city government employees and barangay executives, workers from the private sector are also eligible to apply for the program leading to a degree in business management and entrepreneurship courses.

Both courses are accredited by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED).

Present during the agreement signing were Dean Eloisa Macalinao of the PLM College of Management and Entrepreneurship; Neil Molina, executive director for the Center for Open University Courses and barangay captain Boy Espiritu of Kamuning. The barangay will play host to the implementation of the program.

Classes for the PLM’s open university program will be held every Sunday from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the barangay hall of Kamuning.

One academic year is equivalent to four terms, with each term to cost around P6,000.

Meanwhile, Espiritu exhorted city residents to take advantage of the computer literacy program being offered by the Kamuning Computer Learning Center as part of its continuing effort to improve the degree of competitiveness of city constituents in the information technology highway.

Established in 1991, the program, which already earned a TESDA accreditation, has provided gainful employment to thousands of city residents who are unable to pursue their college education.