THE UST Pay High School plans to exempt Student Council officers from attending Physical Education, Health, and Music (PEHM) classes and Citizen’s Army Training (CAT) to give them more time to organize student activities.
According to Pay High School Principal Editha Fernandez, they are concerned with the students’ welfare, and would like to provide worthwhile activities for them through the Student Council.
The exemption of the Student Council officers will be experimental and their grades will be based on the performance of their duties.
“We have analyzed their activities and it would be beneficial not only for the students, but for the community as well. And we are assured that they will be working since their grades will be based on their performance,” said Fernandez.
According to SC president Catherine Airis Pastoral, one of the Council’s projects is to provide educational and livelihood assistance to Juan Sumulong Elementary School in Manila.
“We would even have a weekly visit to the school, in order to monitor the developments and to give continuous assistance. It (the exemption) is helpful because we will have time for our programs and activities,” said Pastoral.
Some High School students think the exemption is unnecessary.
According to sophomore Nicole Anna Vera Cruz, an efficient student leader should be able to manage his academic subjects and extra-curricular activities.
Michele dela Cruz, a senior student, said that the exemption is unfair to students and to the previous batches of officers since there were no such privileges then.
Meanwhile, new clubs and organizations, such as the Dialectico, the Thomasian Junior Writers’ Guild, and the Martial Arts Club, have been established to prevent students from frequenting billiard halls and PC game shops surrounding the campus, Fernandez said.
Dialectico is the high school counterpart of the Thomasian Debaters Council while the Thomasian Writer’s Guild is an affiliate of the UST Center for Creative Writing and Studies. Karen M. Peña
