Thursday, March 26, 2009 [ manilatimes.net ]
CLARK FREEPORT: Officials of the Clark Development Corp. (CDC) and the Philippine Sciences High School (PSHS) signed a memorandum of agreement for the establishment of a Central Luzon campus.
Clark Development Corp. President Benigno Ricafort and Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Secretary Estrella Alabastro signed the memorandum of agreement that establishes a PSHS campus inside the Clark Polytechnic here.
Ricafort said the Philippine Sciences High School campus is a “breakthrough” for the Clark Freeport since it not only serves as a venue for investments but also a center of excellence.
The CDC president added that the presence of the Philippine Sciences High School inside the Freeport “has great potential of encouraging the youth to aim high in terms of academic excellence.”
The PSHS campus, once established, will be the second educational facility inside the Freeport since the Americans abandoned Clark in 1991. The first government public school here is the University of the Philippines Clark campus.
Alabastro, meanwhile, said the government is looking forward to a collaboration with the UP Clark administration in terms of the sharing of educational resources and faculty.
She said the country currently has a total of nine Philippine Sciences High School campuses per region. The government, she added, expects to have 11 campuses once the Clark and Cordillera Autonomous Region campuses are established.
“We have six more [campuses] to go in our bid to have one campus in each of the country’s 17 regions,” Alabastro noted.
Ricafort also noted that establishing a PSHS campus in Clark is an indication of the Central Luzon region’s “readiness for the great industrial revolution.”
“The PSHS campus in Clark is an indication of Central Luzon’s readiness for the great industrial revolution because we are not only preparing our children’s future through quality education but we are likewise preparing the manpower needs of the companies here and those in the periphery of the Freeport,” Ricafort said.
The signing of the memorandum of agreement, held at the Clark Development Corp. Corporate Offices, was also graced by PSHS Executive Director Filma Brawner, DOST Undersecretary Fortunato de la Peña, and other CDC executives led by Executive Vice President Philip “JB” Panlilio, and Vice President for Business Development Group Ernesto Gorospe.-- Mark Louie Roxas
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