MANILA, Philippines — A bill that would revise the charter and expand the curriculum of the Bulacan State University has been approved by the House of Representatives.
House Bill (HB) No. 7961, or the proposed Revised Bulacan State University Charter, was approved during the session on Tuesday, with 287 lawmakers voting in the affirmative, none in the negative, and just three abstentions.
If enacted, Section 5 of the bill will allow the Bulacan State University system to offer “undergraduate and graduate courses, advanced professional and technical instruction and training” under the following fields of expertise:
- environment and natural sciences
- accountancy, commerce, business, and public administration
- agriculture
- education
- fisheries
- forestry
- engineering and technology
- arts and sciences
- law
- medicine and allied medicine
- architecture
- archeology
- hotel and tourism
- aeronautics
- artificial intelligence and robotics
- public administration
“The BulSU may open new branches or extension campuses in consortium with other academic institutions as it may deem necessary, to improve access to quality education, promote innovation and progress in the academe, and advance its research capabilities, subject to applicable arrangements with other institutions,” the bill read.
“The existing reasonably-sized laboratory junior and senior high school shall continue to operate under the supervision of the College of Education of the BulSU to serve the in-campus requirements of its students,” it added.
The bill also prescribes that the governing board of the Bulacan State University be composed of the following:
- Chairperson of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) (co-chair)
- President of the BulSU System (co-chair)
- Chairperson of the Committee on Higher, Technical and Vocational Education of the Senate (member)
- Chairperson of the Committee on Higher and Technical Education of the House of Representatives (member)
- Regional Director of the National Economic and Development Authority (member)
- Regional Director of the Department of Agriculture (member)
- Regional Director of the Department of Science and Technology (member)
- President of the federation of faculty associations of the BulSU System (member)
- President of the federation of student councils of the BulSU System (member)
- President of the federation of alumni associations of the BulSU System (member)
- President of the nonteaching personnel association of the BulSU System (member)
- Two (2) prominent citizens from the private sector who have distinguished themselves in their professions or fields of specialization (member)
Kabataan party-list Rep. Raoul Manuel, however expressed concerns that the proposed measure does not address problems faced by teachers and students alike, like understaffing, damaged facilities, and classroom shortage at the university.
Manuel was one of the three lawmakers who abstained from voting on HB No. 7961.