Senalt Offire of thie secreta TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES First Regular Session ) 26 MAY 19 P3:47 SENATE 2133 RECEIVED BY: S. No. - Introduced by Senator MARK A. VILLAR AN ACT MANDATING THE RECRUITMENT, HIRING, AND TRAINING OF SCHOOL- BASED LICENSED GUIDANCE COUNSELORS, PSYCHOLOGISTS, SCHOOL SOCIAL WORKERS AND MENTAL HEALTH PERSONNEL EXPLANATORY NOTE Mental health concerns within the Philippine educational system have escalated due to several factors such as mounting academic pressures, persistent socio- economic constraints, and adverse environmental conditions, among others. A recent study by Filipino researchers, published by Cambridge University Press, revealed that depression among Filipino youth has more than doubled in just eight years. Findings showed a sharp rise in moderate to severe depressive symptoms among Filipinos aged 15 to 24-from 9.6 percent in 2013 to 20.9 percent in 2021- reflecting a significant worsening of mental health among young people. In addition, studies' reveal a critical shortage of guidance counselors in Philippine schools, underscoring an urgent policy gap in student mental health support. The country's current counselor-to-student ratio of approximately 1:14,000 significantly lags behind the global standard of 1:250, highlighting the need for ' Lacson, J., Kilag, O. K., Sasan, J. M., Groenewald, E., Vidal, E., & Ponte, R. (2024). The Crisis: An In-Depth Analysis of the Shortage of Guidance Counselors and Its Impact on Student Suicide Rates in Philippine Schools. International Multidisciplinary Journal of Research for Innovation, Sustainability, and Excellence (IMJRISE), 1(1), 129-135. https://risejournals.org/index.php/imjrise/article/view/15
immediate government intervention and systemic reform. Moreover, the Department of Education (DepEd) has acknowledged a severe shortage of guidance counselors. This situation calls for the adoption of urgent measures towards strengthening school-based interventions and timely implementation of policy revamp before reaching the irreversible state. Thus, this bill seeks to mandate the recruitment, hiring, and training of licensed or registered school-based guidance counselors, psychologists, school social workers, and mental health personnel. This is to address the worsening mental health crisis among the youth through the establishment of a comprehensive framework that empowers educational institutions to take a central role in the early identification, intervention, and management of mental health-related challenges. In light of the foregoing, the approval of this bill is earnestly sought. MARK A. VILLAR
Office of ti TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES First Regular Session 26 MAY 19 P3:47 SENATE 2133 RECEIVED BY: S. No. _ Introduced by Senator MARK A. VILLAR AN ACT MANDATING THE RECRUITMENT, HIRING, AND TRAINING OF SCHOOL- BASED LICENSED GUIDANCE COUNSELORS, PSYCHOLOGISTS, SCHOOL SOCIAL WORKERS AND MENTAL HEALTH PERSONNEL Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:
Section 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "Students' Guidance
2 Counseling Act."
Sec. 2. Purposes. - The purpose of this Act is to:
a. Facilitate the recruitment, training, and employment of added mental health personnel, counselors, social workers, and school psychologists within elementary and secondary educational institutions. b. Effectively tend to the mental, emotional, and developmental requirements of primary and high school students. C. Eliminate emotional, behavioral, and psychosocial obstacles that hinder learning, thereby augmenting students' readiness and capacity to learn. d. Provide assistance to school staff and educators in enhancing classroom management, implementing behavioral interventions to ameliorate school discipline, and fostering the ability to promptly detect early indicators of violence and the necessity for mental health services. e. Assist parents in fostering improved school conduct and academic accomplishment in their children.
Sec. 3. Definition. - For purposes of this Act:
(1) "Mental Health and Student Service Provider" includes a qualified counselor, associate counselor or school social worker. (2) "Mental Health and Student Services" includes direct, individual, and group services provided to students, parents, and school personnel by mental health and student service providers, or the coordination of prevention strategies in schools or community-based programs. (3) "Qualified Counselor" refers to an individual who has documented competence in counseling children and adolescents in a school setting and who: (A) Possesses licensure or certification granted by a professional regulatory authority; (B) In the absence of such license or certification, possesses national certification in school counseling or specialty of counseling granted by an independent professional organization; or (C) Holds a minimum master's degree in school counseling. (4) "Associate Counselor" refers to a psychology graduate who is not a licensed counselor but possesses relevant qualifications and training to provide supportive counseling services to students as determined by the Department of Education. (5) "School Social Worker" refers to an individual who holds a degree in social work.
Sec. 4. Guidelines. - Subject to the existing guidelines outlined by the
Department of Education, the Civil Service Commission, and the Department of Budget of Management, the Secretary of Education is charged with the responsibility of facilitating the recruitment process for either (1) Associate Counselor or (1) School Social Worker within each public school. The role of these appointed individuals, denoted as the Associate Counselor or School Social Worker, will be conducted under the guidance and supervision of a Qualified Counselor. The Secretary of Education shall likewise cause the appointment of the aforementioned Qualified Counselor for each school district.
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Sec. 5. Selection, hiring and recruitment. - The Secretary of Education shall,
2 one hundred twenty (120) days after the enactment of this Act, issue the necessary 3 guidelines in the selection, recruitment and hiring of personnel and the nature and 4 scope of the mental health and services to be offered to students.
Sec. 6. Appropriations. - The necessary funds for the implementation of this
6 Act shall be appropriated through the annual General Appropriations Act.
Sec. 7. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part hereof is held invalid or
8 unconstitutional, the remainder of the law or the provision not otherwise affected shall 9 remain valid and subsisting.
Sec. 8. Repealing Clause. - All laws, presidential decrees, executive orders,
memoranda, circulars, and other issuances, or parts thereof, which are inconsistent with the Act, are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.
Sec. 9. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its
publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. Approved,