THE PHILIPPINES, JUNE 30, 2012: Continuing the celebration of Coca-Cola’s centennial year in the Philippines, the Coca-Cola Foundation is scheduled to build its 100th Little Red Schoolhouse in Negros Oriental in 2012.
Launched in 1997, the Little Red Schoolhouse is a project by the Coca-Cola foundation geared towards providing education to children in remote areas all over the Philippines. First started out building 20 schools, the project grew to 50 and just recently, the foundation has finished its 93rd school and is set to build Matuog Elementary School in Barangay Matuog, Tayasan, Negros Oriental as its 100th school.
Together with the Department of Education (DepEd), Philippine Business for Social Progress, Sa Aklat Sisikat Foundation, and AGAPP (Aklat, Gabay, Aruga, tungo sa Pang-angat at Pag-asa Foundation), the program includes reconstruction of public schools, training workshops such as the Little Red Read-A-Thon Program for educators and parent-teacher-community associations.
The schools are multi-grade in which one class has 2-3 levels taught simultaneously and are mostly elementary levels. There has only been one high school that was built in Quezon, Bukidnon, which was hardly hit by an earthquake in 2011.
According to Coca-Cola Foundation president Ma. Cecilia Alcantara, the foundation has been aware of the the huge lack of classrooms as currently there are a shortage of 60,000 classrooms in the country.
"We want to be the catalyst for education in the community," said Alcantara.
In choosing which schools to help, Coca-Cola Foundation chooses from the DepEd’s list of multigrade schools. Two important factors must be secured in choosing a school. One is that the lot has to be owned by DepEd and the readiness of the community to participate on the project.
"We chose these areas because they’re not able to get enough resources from other people and donors. In the list of schools to build, they’re in the lower priority so we chose to assist them as they have the least chances," said Alcantara.
A TVC for the campaign is scheduled to be released on July 15.
