EDUCATION Secretary Leonor M. Briones hailed as a fitting highlight of World Teachers’ Month the conferment of recognition on educators who taught in the most outstanding way the value of hard work and discipline to public-school children during the past school year.
“I remember a reporter who asked me, what do the teachers get for this celebration? This event is an appropriate answer to that,” the education official said.
Briones praised teachers for their values formation efforts as she keynoted the launching of the eighth year of the Values Advocacy Program of Fortune Life Insurance Company, in partnership with the Department of Education and Mary-lindbert International.
Five educators and five school officials were awarded, while three teachers were cited as honorable mention awardees.
Briones led education officials, teachers and school representatives who attended the event at the DepEd Central Office in Pasig on Wednesday (September 12) afternoon, while D. Arnold A. Cabangon, Fortune Life president; Evelyn Carada, Fortune Life executive vice president and general manager; D. Cecilia A. Cabangon, special assistant to the president; and D. Edgard A. Cabangon, chairman of the ALC Group of Companies, led guests from the business group.
The values advocacy program promotes the values of hard work and discipline among Filipino teachers and students. It showcases the life story of Ambassador Antonio L. Cabangon Chua, chairman emeritus and founder of Fortune Life, who rose from poverty to business success by dint of hard work, perseverance and discipline.
The Ambassador Antonio L. Cabangon Chua Gintong Parangal Para sa Edukasyon– Guro, awarded to teachers who worked diligently in promoting the advocacy in classrooms, is now on its seventh year. The Gintong Parangal Para sa Edukasyon-Pamumuno, conferred on schools supervisors, assistant superintendents, superintendents and administrative officials, is now on its second year.
The teacher awardees for school year 2017 to 2018 are Hadja Sarah L. Handang, DepEd Division Zamboanga City; Dr. Rene Rose M. Labasan, San Juan Elementary School, Solano, Nueva Vizcaya; Dominic R. Ocampo, Benito R. Villar Memorial School in ALS (Alternative Learning Systems), Oriental Mindoro; Darwin T. Tadifa, Tubungan Central Elementary School, Tubungan, Iloilo; and Cesar V. Valondo, Fortunato F. Halili National Agricultural School, Bulacan.
The Gintong Parangal Pamumuno awardees are Dr. Denizon P. Domingo, DepEd Tuguegarao City; Dr. Evangeline Ladines, DepEd Pasay City; Dr. Joel B. Lopez, DepEd Laoag City; Dr. Orlando E. Manuel, DepEd Quirino Province; and Dr. Cecilia E. Valderama, DepEd Bulacan.
Briones began her remarks with an almost apologetic acknowledgement that while much needs to be done, the public sector had inadequate funds and resources. She was glad, she said, that the private sector is making up for this, through business groups like Fortune Life, civic organizations, civil-society groups and other concerned communities.
She noted that even today, teachers are “the most beloved, the most highly respected and looked up to” in the community. She, herself, said she could not stop thinking of her teachers from her earliest years as “ma’am” and “sir” despite all the degrees that she has collected through the years. “The world of teachers is getting to be more and more exciting, so many things are happening in the world. Such knowledge can only be transmitted by the teachers,” Briones said.
Fortune Life President D. Arnold A. Cabangon expressed his delight that the program reached 5.9 million public-school pupils and emphasized that Ambassador Cabangon Chua was “our inspiration, the embodiment of the value of hard work and discipline.”
“With the help of our teachers, we can pass on these values to our students and I am sure this will help them in life and with our country’s progress,” he added.
Image credits: Rudy esperas