DepEd seeks hiring of almost 10,000 counselors after school shootings

MANILA, Philippines—The Department of Education (DepEd) is fast–tracking the deployment of 10,000 school counselor associates to support learners’ mental health.

The move following recent shootings in schools.

In a statement on Thursday, Education Secretary Sonny Angara said that accelerating the hiring process aims to place more new counselors to provide basic health and psychological support for students by the end of the year.

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“While we carry out emergency drills and physical safety checks, we must respond to mental health needs with the same urgency,” said Angara.

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Last week, two students were killed in a shooting at the junior high school building of the Ateneo de Zamboanga University in Zamboanga City.

“By speeding up the hiring of our School Counselor Associates, we are creating a stronger safety net for our children,” Angara noted.

Schools with recorded cases of bullying or high mental health needs will be prioritized in the deployment of counselors.

“Keeping our schools safe is not just about building fences or installing metal detectors,” said the secretary.

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“It is also about making sure our learners have trusted, caring adults to talk to whenever they are going through tough times,” he added.

Under DepEd’s digital hiring portal, the Agile Gateway for Appointments and Placements (AGAP), a total of 9,702 positions had been posted as of August 27. 

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Of these, 785 are open for applications, 8,811 are undergoing assessment, and 106 are at the appointment stage. 

The remaining 298 positions are either awaiting the issuance of the Notice of Organization, Staffing and Compensation Action or have yet to be posted.

DepEd expects the assessment and appointment processes to be completed soon, with onboarding to follow immediately so that the new counselor associates are sent to schools by the end of the year.

The department also requested 5,000 additional school counselor associate positions by eliminating vacant guidance-items in their budget.