DepEd commends Joy Schools Program

MANILA, Philippines - Almost a year after the tragedy that was Typhoon Yolanda, many organizations have come to the regions affected looking to make a difference. Some have provided for basic necessities, some for longer-lasting assistance. But the intent is always the same, to bring back normalcy to lands that have seen and experienced so much.

 One company has been working this past year to not only bring back what once was, but to take the rehabilitation call of “building back better” to heart. Learning from the experience of its 2013-born Joy Schools program, Mondelez Philippines has been using “joy” as its guide in extending a hand to Tacloban, Leyte.  

“I think it’s important for the public and the private sectors to collaborate,” begins DepEd Undersecretary for External Linkages Mario Deriquito. Deriquito has been leading the call for companies and organizations and the DepEd to work together in solving the problems brought about by Typhoon Yolanda, specifically those that concern students and teachers.  

The Joy Schools Program is now in Tacloban. Heeding this call, Mondelez Philippines began to look for one school that would be the 6th in its Joy Schools program. Though one might point that there are thousands of schools in need in the regions affected by the calamity, the company’s belief is of doing one thing and doing it well.  

For school year 2014-2015, the Joy Schools program will be feeding 1,150 students rice, viand and fruits for 180 days – including 150 students in Panalaron Central Elementary School in Tacloban. This being an extended period of intervention in itself, the feeding for the latter school is over a period of three years, ending in March 2017.

Furthermore, apart from rebuilding classrooms and a new library building to replace its damaged one, the Joy Schools program has made free water and energy available for Panalaron Central Elementary. Solar panels and solatubes (natural light structures) now give free light inside 18 classrooms. Rainwater tanks provide free water for bathrooms and cleaning. While a deep well pump connected to seesaws and a carousel bring back joy to students and water reserves for the school.

 All of these are initiatives that the DepEd appreciates. “The repair and rehabilitation of classrooms is aligned with our call. Our appeal to the private sector rather than do direct replacement of damaged classrooms is to adopt entire schools for them to do a ‘campus makeover.’ Not only repair and rehabilitation but also by adding some facilities like a library,” relates Usec. Deriquito.

 He adds, “Feeding programs are similarly aligned with our back-to-school strategy. We have an aligned strategy for ensuring that the children go back to school. One of the interventions is a feeding program, which addresses not only the issue of hunger but also of nutrition. The Joy Schools intervention is holistic. We appreciate that there are several components, all of which are needed.”  

 Through the partnership with the DepEd and the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP), Mondelez Philippines aims to continue bringing joy in new ways to its six schools. It is the company’s mission, what it lives for and what it stands for.

Visit www.mondelezinternational.com/ph for more information about the Joy Schools program.