TACLOBAN CITY – More than one million students across Eastern Visayas returned to their classrooms on Monday, June 16, as the Department of Education (DepEd) reported a “generally smooth, orderly, and peaceful” opening of classes in the region.
To ensure the safety of students, the Philippine National Police deployed over 2,000 personnel across the region to assist with school security and traffic management.
DepEd Regional Information Officer Jasmin Calzita said that while some issues were encountered on the first day, they were quickly addressed through coordinated efforts.
“As expected, we encountered perennial concerns such as late enrollees and last-minute school preparations in some areas,” Calzita said in an interview. “However, these were promptly addressed at the school, division, and regional levels.”
She added that late enrollment will still be accepted, though there is no specific deadline yet.
“We will wait for guidance from the central office. As long as the system remains open, we will continue to accept late enrollees,” she said.
Last school year, Eastern Visayas recorded more than 1.17 million enrolled learners.
For the current school year, the DepEd central office has opened 837 new teaching positions for the region.
At present, the total number of teachers in the region is 55,427, covering all levels from Kindergarten to Senior High School.
Eastern Visayas has a total of 4,254 public schools.
(JOEY A. GABIETA
