Last Mile Schools Act

Senate Offier of the Secrclatp TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE ) REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) SEr 24 P4:47 First Regular Session ) SENATE 1412 S. No. — Introduced by Senator Loren Legarda AN ACT ESTABLISHING PUBLIC BASIC EDUCATION SCHOOLS IN GEOGRAPHICALLY ISOLATED AND DISADVANTAGED AND CONFLICT-AFFECTED AREAS, PROVIDING ACCESS ROADS LEADING TO LAST MILE SCHOOLS, AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR EXPLANATORY NOTE

Section 1, Article XIV of the 1987 Constitution mandates the State to protect

and promote the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels and shall take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all. Yet, children in geographically isolated, disadvantaged, and conflict-affected areas continue to face severe inequities in access to safe, adequate, and conducive learning environments. This bill seeks to address such inequities by establishing Last Mile Schools under the administration of the Department of Education (DepEd). These schools shall specifically cater to learners in remote, marginalized, and conflict-affected communities, including those within Indigenous Cultural Communities, consistent with the rights of Indigenous Peoples as recognized under Republic Act No. 8371, or the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act of 1997. The proposed measure institutionalizes clear criteria for identifying Last Mile Schools, such as having fewer than four classrooms, makeshift structures, absence of electricity, multigrade classes, limited teachers, small student populations, or predominantly Indigenous learners. It further directs DepEd to design tailored programs for these schools covering learning delivery, staffing, maintenance

formulas, teacher preparation and training, learner support services, and evaluation systems. Recognizing that the lack of access is aggravated by poor or absent infrastructure, the bill mandates national government agencies to provide essential support services: the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) for the construction of access roads, the Department of Energy (DOE) and National Electrification Administration (NEA) for electrification; and the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) for connectivity. To ensure accountability and impact, the DepEd is required to assess and report separately on learner outcomes in Last Mile Schools, and to review and revise policies to reflect the unique contexts of these schools. The measure also establishes a five-year school building program for Last Mile Schools, to be pursued in coordination with relevant national agencies and local government units. In view of the urgent need to institutionalize targeted and sustainable interventions for learners in the most underserved communities, the immediate passage of this bill is earnestly sought. LOREN LEGARDA

Senate Pffice of the Secretary TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES SEP 24 P4'47 First Regular Session SENATE RECEIVED BY: _ 1412 S. No. _ Introduced by Senator Loren Legarda AN ACT ESTABLISHING PUBLIC BASIC EDUCATION SCHOOLS IN GEOGRAPHICALLY ISOLATED AND DISADVANTAGED AND CONFLICT-AFFECTED AREAS, PROVIDING ACCESS ROADS LEADING TO LAST MILE SCHOOLS, AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:

Section 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "Last Mile Schools Act".

Sec. 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is the declared policy of the State to protect

3 and promote the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels, and to take 4 appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all. The State recognizes and promotes the rights of Indigenous Cultural 6 Communities within the framework of national unity and development. To this end, 7 the State shall recognize the right of indigenous families and communities to retain shared responsibility for the upbringing, training, education, and well-being of their 9 children, consistent with the rights of the child. The State shall improve the quality and access to basic education for children in far-flung, isolated, disadvantaged, and conflict-affected areas, as well as those In Last Mile Schools, by investing in school infrastructure, access roads, and programs responsible for their unique contexts.

Sec. 3. Definition of Terms. - As used in this Act:

(a) Basic Education refers to the intended basic learning needs which

provide the foundation on which subsequent learning can be based. It includes kindergarten, elementary and secondary education as well as alternative learning systems for out-of-school learners and those with special needs; (b) Basic Education School refers to learning institutions accredited by the Department of Education (DepEd) to deliver services addressing the intended basic learning needs of students; (c) Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged and Conflict-Affected Areas (GIDCA) refer to schools or communities situated in remote or marginalized locations, with limited access to essential services and infrastructure, or impacted by conflict or insecurity; (d) Indigenous Cultural Communities (ICCS)/Indigenous Peoples (IPs) refer to the same definition stated in Section 3h, Chapter 2 of Republic Act No. 8371, or The Indigenous Peoples' Rights Act of 1997, which describes it as "group of people or homogenous societies identified by self-ascription and ascription by others, who have continuously lived as organized community on communally bounded and defined territory, and who have, under claims of ownership since time immemorial, occupied, possessed and utilized such territories, sharing common bonds of language, customs, traditions and other distinctive cultural traits, or who have, through resistance to political, social and cultural inroads of colonization, non-indigenous religions and cultures, became historically differentiated from the majority of Filipinos. ICCs/IPs shall likewise include peoples who are regarded as indigenous on account of their descent from the populations which inhabited the country, at the time of conquest or colonization, or at the time of inroads of non- indigenous religions and cultures, or the establishment of present state boundaries, who retain some or all of their own social, economic, cultural and political institutions, but who may have been displaced from their traditional domains or who may have resettled outside their ancestral domains"; and

(e) Last Mile Schools refer to public basic education schools with gaps in resources and facilities, which are located in geographically isolated and disadvantaged and conflict-affected areas (GIDCA).

Sec. 4. Establishment of Last Mile Schools. - The Last Mile Schools are hereby

5 established, under the administration of the DepEd, to cater to the basic education of 6 learners throughout the country's GIDCA. The establishment of Last Mile Schools in locations situated by the ICCs shall 8 be undertaken in consideration of the rights of the IPs, in accordance with Republic 9 Act No. 8371.

Sec. 5. Access to Education. - The DepEd shall collaborate with concerned

national government agencies for the delivery of the infrastructures necessary to ensure access to education in the Last Mile Schools, namely: (a) Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), for the construction of access roads leading to the location of Last Mile Schools; (b) Department of Energy (DOE) and National Electrification Administration (NEA), for the installation of electricity; and (c) Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), for the installation of information and communications technology.

Sec. 6. Criteria. - The indicators used in identifying a public school to be

considered a Last Mile School may include any of the following: (a) Having fewer than four (4) classrooms; (b) With makeshift or nonstandard rooms; (c) Absence of or irregular electricity; (d) Have not been allocated funds for repairs or new construction projects in the last four (4) years unless destroyed; (e) With travel distance of more than one hour from the center of a city or municipality, or with difficulty of terrain or of such nature as to be considered having difficulty of access to existing educational institutions; (f) Having multigrade classes or rooms; (g) With less than five (5) teachers;

(h) Having a student population of less than one hundred (100) learners; (i) With more than seventy-five percent (75%) IP learners; and (i) Having such other circumstances that make it difficult for learners to access school facilities.

Sec. 7. Tailored Programs for Last Mile Schools. - The DepEd shall formulate

and implement programs responsive to the unique context of Last Mile Schools, teachers, and learners, including but not limited to: (a) Learning delivery and intervention mechanisms; (b) School staffing standards, given the unique needs of learners in Last Mile Schools; (c) Formula for school maintenance and other operating expenses, in consultation with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM); (d) Learning tools and equipment; (e) Learner support services; (f) Relevant pre-service teacher education curriculum and assessment with the Teacher Education Council, the Commission on Higher Education, and the Professional Regulation Commission; (g) Relevant in-service training, through the National Educators Academy of the Philippines (NEAP); and (h) Teacher, school head, and school evaluations, in coordination with the Civil Service Commission.

Sec. 8. Implementation. - The school building program for Last Mile Schools

shall be established and completed within a period of five (5) years after the effectivity of this Act. To facilitate synchronicity, harmony and complementarity of plans, resources, and efforts of both the national government and the local government units (LGUs) towards the attainment of the objectives of this Act, the DepEd shall plan and implement the programs, projects, and activities that address the needs of the Last Mile Schools, in coordination and collaboration with the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP), DPWH, DICT, DOE, NEA, Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Environment and Natural Resources

1 (DENR), National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), DBM, 2 CSC, TEC, and concerned LGUS.

Sec. 9. Reporting on Learner Outcomes. - The DepEd shall assess and report

4 on learner outcomes separately for students enrolled in Last Mile Schools, to ensure 5 that progress and gaps are systematically monitored and addressed.

Sec. 10. Policy Review. - The DepEd shall review and revise existing relevant

7 policies, standards, and guidelines to directly address the specific conditions and 8 contexts of Last Mile Schools.

Sec. 11. Appropriations. - The amount necessary for the implementation of this

10 Act shall be included in the budgets of the concerned departments, agencies and 11 Government-Owned and Controlled Corporations in the annual General Appropriations 12 Act.

Sec. 12. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - Within ninety (90) days from

14 the approval of this Act, the Secretary of Education shall, in consultation with the 15 NCIP, DPWH, DICT, DOE, NEA, DSWD, DENR, NDRRMC, DBM, CSC, TEC, and Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines, formulate the rules and regulations implementing the provisions of this Act.

Sec. 13. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act is declared

19 unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act or any provisions not affected thereby shall 20 remain in force and effect.

SEC. 14. Repealing Clause. - Any law, presidential decree or issuance,

executive order, letter of instruction, rule or regulation inconsistent with the provisions of this Act is hereby repealed or modified accordingly.

SEC. 15. Effectivity. - Notwithstanding the non-issuance of the implementing

rules and regulations, this Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days following its complete publication in the Official Gazette or a newspaper of general circulation. Approved,