VP launches school mental health program
VICE President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte led on Wednesday the launch of the School Mental Health Program (SMHP), as well as the School-Based Feeding Program for 2024.
Launched in Quezon City, the School Mental Health Program is an additional flagship program of the Department of Education (DepEd) as part of its Oplan Kalusugan or OK as DepEd programs on school health and nutrition programs.
It is also in fulfillment of Republic Act 11036, or the “Mental Health Act of 2016,” which mandates DepEd to provide guidelines to schools in the development and implementation of a mental health program to raise awareness on mental health issues.
According to DepEd Assistant Secretary for Operations Dexter Galban, the program is also an “amalgamation” of all efforts and initiatives at all governance levels of the department to build the capacity of schools to promote mental health in the school setting.
Galban said the budget for the SMHP increased in 2024 from P97.25 million in Fiscal Year 2023 to P210 million in Fiscal Year 2024, which will be utilized in hiring more health personnel in schools, as well as program support funds for field offices and salary increase for registered psychologists.
Among the programs that would be implemented under the SMHP is the integration of mental health programs in the Matatag K-10 curriculum, as well as the homeroom guidance and implementation guidelines.
It will also hold convergence sessions with mental health experts and partners and create a school mental health policy to guide the proper use of increased funds for mental health policies.
Meanwhile, Galban said the school-based feeding program for School Year 2024-2025 will see an increase in the number of feeding days and the budget for the feeding commodities in the upcoming school year.
The Nutritious Food Products (NFP) addresses the problems of undernutrition in select school children, with the aim of improving classroom attendance, encouraging learners to enroll, providing nourishment for their growth and development, participation and benefit from their class, and improving their nutritional status.
The program has two components: the hot meals and nutritious food products and the milkbased component, which will be given to undernourished Kinder to Grade 6 students.
The hot meals regular feeding component will now run for 220 days in the current school year from 120 days and will now cost around P25 per learner, while the milk-based component will now run for 55 days and will cost P22 per learner.
In her remarks, Duterte said DepEd cares deeply for the health and education of its learners and that schools are vital for promoting both their physical and mental health.
“We’ve been working hard to make them healthier and safer places to learn,” Duterte said.