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Synergeia’s #MEKA Goes Viral

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#MEKA is Synergeia Foundation’s ongoing campaign to transform local leaders, institutions, and communities into champions for education. With its launch on Facebook, it certainly has doubled Synergeia’s potential of spreading an epidemic of hope in the education sector.

The #MEKA campaign was launch during the 13th Washington SyCip National Education Summit in September 2019

In contemporary tech lingo, #MEKA defines Synergeia’s commitment to spark a movement for good education governance and articulates the distinct culture and value system that fuels it: Relevance- MEKAbuluhan; Knowledge- MEKAtalinuhan; Discovery- MEKAtanungan; and Brilliance- MEKAgalingan.

Proof to the positive impact of the Synergeia ideal is the awarding of the Seal of Good Governance to local government units (LGUs) that excel in spurring community collaboration to design and implement sustainable education programs that boost learning outcomes of children in their localities.

Since 2017, with staunch support from USAID and advocates from the private sector, Synergeia has been conferring the Seal, not only to crown achievements, but also to challenge the entire Synergeia community to aim higher at boosting enrollment rates, increasing the number of successful primary school graduates, reducing the number of non-readers and frustrated readers, and transforming local school boards and school governing councils into true education champions.

“We award the Seal of Good Governance as proof that their success is not just anecdotal but that their efforts have truly yielded fruit,” said Dr. Milwilda M Guevarra, Synergeia President and CEO

The granting of the Seal likewise serves as a barometer for readiness of Synergeia leaders to harness their resources to sustain and scale education governance reform from the “bottom-up.”

“All of us here are leaders of Synergeia,” affirmed Synergeia Chairman Fr. Jose Ramon Villarin, SJ, at the recently concluded 14th Washington SyCip National Education Summit. “Our role as Synergeia leaders is to act as a catalyst. A catalyst stimulates action that pulls us together and pushes action from inside ourselves. It brings together our individual work and energy to come up with something bigger than our individual efforts combined.” Fr. Villarin added that, this time, “copying” each other’s best practices is not only allowed but even beneficial to the dissemination of the Synergeia vision and mission.


This year, 27 LGUs were honored with the Seal and received from the Summit’s major sponsors generous support to sustain their advocacy: P75,000 worth of gas cards from SEAOIL, P79,000 worth of phone cards from Smart Communications, and a package of children’s books from SGV Foundation worth P50,000.

Leaders of the three firms had nothing but heartening words for the Synergeia community.

Mr. Wilson Tan, Chairman and Managing Partner of SGV and Company, reiterated his company’s confidence in the Foundation’s bid to “improve basic education in the Philippines as a means of alleviating poverty” after the heart of Synergeia’s Chairman for Life and SGV Founder Washington SyCip.

For his part, Mr. Darwin Flores, Vice President for Community Partnerships of Smart Communications, a Synergeia supporter since 2017, emphasized the need for connectivity to support young learners in the New Normal, recognizing “the role of education and local governments in producing the leadership and capital for nation-building.”

Finally, Mr. Mark Yu, President for Retail and COO of SEAOIL underscored the need to cultivate a new breed of leaders in pandemic times: “…strong leaders who are grounded on the issues and focused on solutions… adaptive to the dynamic and uncertain environment, that can generate trust (and) move communities towards positive results.”

Speaking for this year’s Seal of Good Governance awardees, two-time Seal recipient, Vigan City Mayor Carlo Medina, went back to the basics, calling for unity and single-minded pursuit of the Synergeia vision and mission: “This is not an award for any one person, this is an award for the community. We can all persevere to defy gravity.”

About Synergeia

Synergeia, founded in 2002, is a non–profit organization of individuals, institutions, and organizations working to improve the quality of basic education in the country.

Official media partners: INQUIRER.net, INQPOP!, BusinessWorld, Malaya Business Insight, Pageone, The Philippine Post, The Luzon Daily, The Visayas Journal, The Mindanao Life, Manila Magazine, Woman PH, Daily Guardian, Damdamag Ilocano, Digital News Exchange, DZNL Aksyon Radyo, Love Radio La Union, TVigan, Asap Tagudin Cable TV Network, Inc., DCATV Networks, Eagle Fiber, Excel Fiber Cable Network, Inc., Gen. Trias Cable Network, Inc., Shama Fiber Broadband and CATV Networks, Inc., Superior CATV Networks, Tagaytay Broadband and CATV Network, Inc. and Trend Fiber CATV Systems Corp.

With special thanks to DZRH May Trabaho, DZRJ Good Job Philippines, Net 25 Pambansang Almusal and Women Lifestyle.

Mission possible: Datu Paglas mayor reshapes learning model in pandemic era

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A Sangguniang Kabataan assists a child at a learning session in Datu Paglas, Maguindanao

By Manolo Serapio Jr.

Datu Paglas was the first municipality in Maguindanao province to tap the Sangguniang Kabataan, or youth leaders, to mentor children who are struggling with remote learning. Six months into the program, the children have a clearer understanding of their learning modules, says Mayor Abubakar Paglas.

“It’s a big challenge to make children learn during a pandemic so we’re finding ways to continue teaching them,” he says.

Since the coronavirus pandemic began, many local governments have taken steps to ensure that learning continues in their communities with schools across the country closed.

Datu Paglas, with a population of under 30,000, has not recorded a single case of COVID-19 transmission since the pandemic began. Amid weak Internet connectivity, the town implemented in-person tutorials, becoming the first municipality in Maguindanao to make use of the SK to tutor children whose parents cannot mentor them because they work or they’re unschooled.

These in-person tutorials are typically done in open areas with learners and volunteers adhering to safety protocols. It’s yet another innovation from the municipality which has won the Seal of Good Education Governance four times, in recognition of its efficiency in delivering basic education to its constituents and improving learning outcomes.

It was among nine local government units that received the Seal for a fourth time since Synergeia Foundation and the United States Agency for International Development began awarding it to cities and municipalities annually since 2017. A total of 27 local governments won the Seal during the 14th Washington SyCip National Education Summit held virtually last month.

Mayor Paglas says he is happy with the continued recognition of the municipality’s efforts towards education. But he says the real mission is to overcome illiteracy.

“What we want is for children to be able to read and for those who can read, that they’re able to understand what they’re reading,” he says.

‘No one should be left behind’

The town had been implementing a summer reading program before the pandemic hit. This was replaced in November by the SK mentoring project initiated by the mayor to help children cope with the learning modules.

All 230 leaders and members of the Sangguniang Kabataan are spread out as volunteer teachers in the 23 barangays of Datu Paglas during the week to mentor students from Grades 1 to 6.

Twenty-four-year old Ivan Kamamang focuses on slow learners in his barangay, making sure they are able to understand difficult subject areas like mathematics with examples that are easier to grasp.

With a degree in secondary education, Kamamang and his SK team spend three days a week tutoring children in all eight sitios in Barangay Bunawan. They travel by motorcycle to reach remote areas to make sure that all children who need help would be attended to.

“Our goal is that no one should be left behind when it comes to education in Datu Paglas,” he said.

Now, Mayor Paglas and the Local School Board are in discussions with teachers to produce modules that children can comprehend more easily. “To improve education in Datu Paglas, we need to focus more on comprehension. A lot of children can read but they don’t understand what they’re reading,” he admits.

‘Most powerful legacy’

Datu Paglas has been a local government partner of Synergeia since 2004. Before the pandemic, the Local School Board together with the different departments of the local government visit all the schools to conduct workshops with all stakeholders including the School Governing Council leaders and members.

In 2019, they conducted workshops – similar to those done by Synergeia – in all 27 public schools in Datu Paglas including three high schools.

At one of the parenting workshops in Tocao Madidis Central Elementary School, one of the issues raised was the increase in absenteeism among students during the month of October.

These students skipped classes because they worked in the banana plantations during the harvest season. The municipal government has since issued an ordinance to prevent child labor.

“We told the parents that they should not bring their children with them during harvest time because they should be studying, not working,” the local chief executive said.

Datu Paglas was also one of the municipalities that joined the virtual writeshop with Synergeia months before remote learning in public schools began in October. Nearly 300 teachers participated in the writeshop where they submitted lesson plans and received pointers and assistance from Synergeia in polishing them.

Synergeia works in partnership with USAID and the United Nations Children’s Fund, supported by the Government of Japan, in improving the quality of basic education in Datu Paglas and other municipalities in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

“Local governments should support the education of children even during the pandemic because it is the most powerful legacy we can leave them,” says Mayor Paglas.

How a millennial mayor is revolutionizing education governance in Pangasinan

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A teachers assesses a student’s reading skills in San Manuel, Pangasinan

By Manolo Serapio Jr.

When the town of San Manuel, Pangasinan was declared as one of the winners of the Seal of Good Education Governance, Emmanuel Giovanni Perez literally jumped for joy. And his moment of jubilation was captured in an eight-second video that spread like wildfire.

“I felt like I won the lottery or Miss Universe,” said Perez, the 28-year-old senior tourism operations officer who compiled the municipality’s entry. “We were ready to lose, learn and join again next year. So the win was quite overwhelming.”

San Manuel became the first municipality in Pangasinan province to earn the Seal of Good Education Governance conferred by Synergeia Foundation and the United States Agency for International Development. It was quite a feat for a local government that joined the search for the first time.

Perhaps the one most elated by the victory is San Manuel Mayor Kenneth Marco Perez who made it his mission to focus on education when he assumed office in 2019.

“I wanted to win this award because I knew that it would be a huge boost to the confidence of our youth if they realize how we are helping them achieve their dreams,” said the 31-year-old local chief executive.

San Manuel was one of seven local government units that won the Seal for the first time, announced during the 14th Washington SyCip National Education Summit last month.

In all, 27 cities and municipalities were awarded the Seal in recognition of their efficiency in delivering basic education in their communities despite a crippling pandemic.

Equally beaming with pride over San Manuel’s win is Tom Valdez, vice president of San Roque Power Corporation which supports education, livelihood and other projects in San Manuel and in two other municipalities – San Nicolas, also in Pangasinan, and Itogon in Benguet.

“We’re very lucky because Mayor Perez is pro-education and has been very helpful in inculcating the value of education to the children and teachers,” said Valdez.

Even before the pandemic hit, education had been a top priority for Mayor Perez who had libraries built in nearly all schools, pushed for book donations, implemented feeding programs for children and was never late for any school activity, said Giovanni, a former high school teacher.

As the COVID-19 pandemic shut schools and forced children to learn from their homes, Mayor Perez allowed a group of college students to tutor some kindergarten and elementary learners.

“They would gather in one community and they would tutor the children under the trees. I told them they could do it as long as they observe safety protocols and I asked them to tell me if they would need help from the barangays,” he said.

‘Balligi San Manuel’

Holding safe, limited in-person learning sessions has become a hallmark of many local government partners of Synergeia to help children cope with the demands of distance education. The foundation works to lift the quality of basic education in partnership with 421 local governments.

Tutorials like these are being carried out in other Synergeia communities in Iloilo, Maguindanao, La Union and Lanao del Sur provinces.

Mayor Perez said he has asked the Sangguniang Kabataan or youth leaders in San Manuel to help the student volunteers with the tutorials and they said they would willingly participate.

The Local School Board also implemented  the Balligi Effective Assistance Reading program which increased the number of independent readers in the municipality. “Balligi” means success, and “Balligi San Manuel” is the town’s slogan.

Teachers assess students’ reading either online or by visiting the homes of those who don’t have Internet connection. They discuss the assessment outcome with the parents or guardians and the teachers would then determine appropriate and effective strategies to improve the child’s reading comprehension.

Distribution of Risograph machines in San Manuel. Pangasinan

San Roque Power

San Roque Power Corporation, which operates the 435-megawatt hydropower plant located in San Manuel, has been providing workbooks to every child in San Manuel, San Nicolas and Itogon since it began a reading, mathematics and science proficiency program with Synergeia in 2007.

That followed a lecture of Synergeia CEO Milwida Guevara on reinventing corporate social responsibility at the Asian Institute of Management which Valdez attended. “I was so impressed so I talked to her, then we started implementing the project,” he said.

Reflecting its commitment to education, the company produced a culture-based workbook for Pangasinan in 2013, and is now focused on helping the Local School Board organize and strengthen the project management teams in each school.

“It really takes a whole community, a whole municipality to educate a child,” says Valdez, a Pangasinense who worked for 13 years with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

‘Only way out of poverty’

Soon after winning the Seal and an interview at local radio station Bombo Radyo, Mayor Perez said he got a call from former San Manuel residents now living in the United States. Inspired by the municipality’s efforts towards education, they donated P50,000 to an educational institution in the town, he said.

“It was really good to know that a lot of people want to help out,” the mayor said.

An incident that happened before the pandemic showed Mayor Perez’s resolve to stress the importance of education among the town’s youth, when a group of high school students were brought to his office after stealing some materials from their school canteen.

These students were skipping school “so I told them that we won’t file any charges if they promise to get serious with their studies and fortunately they did,” he said.

And despite the pandemic, Mayor Perez still visits the teachers in the schools regularly and on his birthday asked well wishers to donate learning materials to the schools in lieu of gifts, Valdez of San Roque Power recalls.

Mayor Perez also increased the number of the town’s scholars to 100 from 80 despite a steep cut in San Manuel’s budget, acknowledging that many parents have lost their jobs due to the pandemic which made it tougher for some families to continue sending their children to school.

Giovanni, the tourism officer, was a former scholar of San Manuel who vowed to give back. He and other previous municipality scholars had initiated the Adopt-A-Student program in the high school where he previously taught, and together they helped defray the expenses of underprivileged learners.

“Education is a basic human right for all,” said Giovanni, a distant relative of the mayor.

The local government also provided Risograph machines to the schools to reproduce the learning modules for students after some teachers said they were digging into their own pockets to print some of the school materials.

“Education is the only way out of poverty and to a better future,” said Mayor Perez. “It’s the only way we can achieve the changes that we want to achieve. Unscrupulous politicians are afraid of people who get educated because they end up knowing better.”

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