Flashback to the Cebu Impact Project
Presidio Education® team members hand-deliver new backpacks filled with school supplies for all 92 Adlaon Integrated School first graders in Cebu City, Cebu, Philippines. Photograph by Presidio Education®, 2018.
Cebu Impact Project
For our summer 2018 Cebu Impact Project, we flew part of our faculty, staff and college intern teams to Cebu City, Cebu, Philippines, to donate 280 handpicked Presidio Education® backpacks filled with school supplies for impoverished Hipodromo Elementary School and Adlaon Integrated School first graders. Unfortunately, many of these Cebuano children and their families live far below the poverty line. Many are forced to live in makeshift homes in nearby cemeteries and cannot even afford simple necessities like pencils or used sandals. Yet, despite these adversities, these children are full of so much love, joy and hope.
After driving hours into the jungle, Presidio Education® faculty hand out new backpacks filled with school supplies to happy Adlaon Integrated School first graders. Photograph by Presidio Education®, 2018.
Protecting Impoverished and Abandoned Children
Donating money is often very necessary to fund academic programs for underprivileged children. But donating time to meet, play and work with underprivileged children in person is truly priceless. Children need to know that we care for them and that they are not alone. Our faculty, staff and college interns volunteer with orphans, but the time we spend with abandoned children is often emotionally heavy. This feeling sticks with us. This is why we need your help to solve these most urgent problems concerning impoverished and abandoned children. By working together, we can show these children that there is still a tremendous amount of compassion within our communities and that people truly care about them. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) provides critical information on how to help abandoned children. There is nothing more tragic than a child who is left alone.
Adlaon Integrated School first grade girls eagerly looking inside their new Presidio Education® backpacks. Photograph by Presidio Education®, 2018.
United Nations Sustainability Development Goals
The United Nations (UN) Sustainability Development Goals (SDG) lists 17 crucial targets to build sustainable communities. The top SDG priority is to defeat poverty. There are many avenues for eliminating poverty, such as increasing equal opportunities for education, providing healthy and sufficient amounts of food, creating jobs with fair pay and safe work conditions, promoting sustainable health care, providing sustainable housing, protecting biodiversity and the environment, and drastically reducing crime. However, to build truly sustainable communities we must all work together. We encourage all parents, students, educators, community members, organizations and companies to tackle as many SDG goals as possible. At Presidio Education®, we try our best to fight poverty by increasing educational opportunities for those who may not receive a fair chance at receiving quality education. While this includes providing free instruction and school supplies to impoverished students, this also means building professional relationships with local government officials and school administrators to see how we can provide additional educational support.
Summer 2018 Presidio Education® Cebu Impact Project in Cebu City, Cebu, Philippines. After receiving handpicked backpacks filled with school supplies, under-resourced Adlaon Integrated School first graders excitedly surround part of the Presidio Education® faculty to say goodbye. Photograph by Presidio Education®, 2018.
Fighting Child Poverty
Protecting public health is crucial for communities to flourish. Children especially need sufficient and healthy food, clean drinking water, clothing and shelter. Unfortunately, many children neither receive adequate health care nor safe places to sleep. For example, many Hipodromo Elementary School families are so poor that they are forced to live in nearby cemeteries in makeshift living quarters. Without indoor plumbing, walls, or doors, families often cover the tops of the mausoleums with tarps for minimal protection from rain and wind. Still, these families we met are left largely unprotected from the elements and wholly unprotected from criminals. Without the kindness from others, these good families will continue to live in extreme poverty. While the World Health Organization (WHO) continues to work on solutions to increase public health on a global level, we need your help to reduce child poverty.
Families inside their makeshift home in a mausoleum within the Chinese Cemetery in Barangay Carreta, Cebu City, Cebu, Philippines, welcoming the Presidio Education® team. Many Hipodromo Elementary School children and their families have no choice but to construct makeshift homes in these mausoleums due to extreme poverty. Photograph by Presidio Education®, 2018.
A Story from Our Cebuano Faculty Member Kenley Lou
Growing up in Cebu enabled me to observe various societal problems, including gaps in educational opportunities, access to public health and the increasing poverty rates. Despite these challenges, Cebuanos are very close-knit. Rooted on bayanihan, which means the spirit of helping and cooperating with each other, locals have a strong sense of community for no personal benefit. Despite the relatively low standards of living in Cebu and an evident income gap, locals never forget to be happy and grateful.
In the past five years, the Philippine education system was revised to a twelve-year curriculum to match international standards. Due to the lack of financial resources from the government, the public school system experiences insufficient facilities, which negatively impacts student growth and understanding of STEM subjects. Moreover, there is limited access to quality education through private and international schools, which are often unaffordable for families far below the poverty line.
The Cebu Impact Project is a project close to heart. Through this project, we were able to make a positive impact in the lives of 280 first grade students. The joy of being able to reach out and give back to my own community is very humbling. Providing school supplies and backpacks goes beyond giving students the right tools to start school. The children know we really care for them.
Vast improvements with funding for healthcare and education sectors are needed. Due to restrictions with government funding and family finances, many Filipino children do not have access to good medical care and vaccinations. In larger families only some of the children are able to receive primary and secondary education. Older siblings are frequently forced to sacrifice obtaining an education to take care of younger siblings. School administrations and local government officials try their best to assist under-resourced children.
Hipodromo Health Clinic Nurse Charlyn Leyson conducts health checks on a young child in Barangay Hipodromo, Cebu City, Cebu, Philippines. Photograph by Presidio Education®, 2018.
For more details about our trip to Cebu, please read our short story about what we saw, felt and learned. This Cebu Impact Project was a team effort and could not have been successful without everyone’s ideas, support and kindness. Please contact our Sustainability Team to find out how you can help these impoverished children. Thank you kindly!
Get Involved with Presidio Education® Sustainability Projects!
Please contact our Sustainability Team if you are interested in volunteering with Presidio Education®. We are always looking to develop new Impact Projects around the world. Regardless if you are a student, parent, government official, or community member, please help us build sustainable communities for those in need! Thank you!
