DepEd Seeks Increased Budget for More School Counselor Associates

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Education (DepEd) is set to request additional funding to hire more school counselor associates to address learners’ mental well-being. At the Kapihan sa Manila Prince Hotel forum on Wednesday, DepEd Governance and Operations Undersecretary Malcolm Garma noted that the agency had already begun the process of hiring nearly 10,000 This move comes amid growing concerns about the mental health of students. In recent years, especially after the pandemic, there have been reports of increased stress and anxiety among the youth. The hiring of more school counselor associates aims to establish a more nuanced support system for each student. The importance of mental health support in educational settings has been increasingly recognized in the Philippines, but a lack of resources has been a long-standing challenge. This proposed budget increase is expected to be one of the measures to address these issues. The newly hired counselors will be responsible for early identification of students' emotional problems, facilitating access to appropriate support, and implementing preventative mental health education.