PANGASINAN COLLEGE TO START OPERATIONS IN APRIL
LINGAYEN, Pangasinan: An initial 100 students will comprise the first batch at the Pangasinan Polytechnic College’s (PPC) Center for Lifelong Learning (CeLL) when it starts its classes in April.
This was announced on Valentine’s Day by Raymundo Rovillos, PPC interim president, at the formal launching of the CeLL at the Narciso Ramos Sports and Civic Center here.
The PPC, which was created through Provincial Ordinance 300-2023, is the first and only polytechnic college being run by a provincial government in the Ilocos Region.
“We are ready, the scholarships are ready. We will just have to identify the students from the 4Ps beneficiaries who were present a while ago,” said Rovillos.
The CeLL, one of two PPC components, will offer courses accredited by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, micro-credentials, and other short-term courses that will provide lifelong learning and education.
Rovillos said that the CeLL is envisioned to produce a highly skilled and competent workforce from the underprivileged and marginalized sector of the province to prepare them for gainful employment, entrepreneurship, and improve their lives.
For the bachelor’s track, which is the second PPC component, Rovillos said the admissions will be in August.
“We will have an admission policy, so it will still be poor but deserving students, especially in the baccalaureate track,” Rovillos said.
He added that for vocational-technical up to diploma courses, it will be open as long as there are resources, such as the scholarships and facilities.
Gov. Ramon Guico 3rd thanked the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) headed by Vice Gov. Mark Ronald Lambino for the legislative and funding support to the PPC.
He also congratulated the technical working group led by Rovillos that created and established PPC.
Guico said he was a bit emotional, saying he started his political career in his hometown Binalonan by establishing an educational institution there during the term of his father, now Pangasinan 5th District Rep. Ramon Guico Jr.
After two decades, from a handful of students holding classes at the second floor of the town’s public market then, the University of Eastern Pangasinan now has more than 12,000 students in its sprawling campus along the Manila North Road in Binalonan.
“Study well. This is the most important legacy of our province to our youth. And, once you make it, be somebody who will create an impact on your family, but most especially on the community and collectively on our nation,” Guico said.
For his part, Lambino, who chairs the SP committee on education, cited the event as a significant milestone and journey towards fostering excellence in education and professional development.