2 universities in Baguio shift calendars, too

BAGUIO CITY, Philippines—Two universities in Baguio City are also starting their first semester in August, after adjusting their academic calendars to match the school opening of the University of the Philippines system, including UP Baguio here, and the Ateneo de Manila University.

The Saint Louis University (SLU) and the University of Baguio (UB), both autonomous, have notified the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) about their new school calendars, said Luisa Valencia, CHEd Cordillera regional director, on Tuesday.

“Both HEIs (higher education institutions) signified that they will change [their school opening] to August,” she said in a text message to the Inquirer.

The SLU registrar’s office said the first semester of 2014 will start on Aug. 11 and end on Dec. 20. The UB registrar’s office said the university’s first semester this year will also start on Aug. 11 but end on Dec. 11.

UP Baguio was the first university here to announce its new academic calendar, with its school opening scheduled on Aug. 12. Classes for the first semester in UP Baguio will end on Dec. 9.

Reports about the revised academic calendar of SLU and UB have been circulating since February, occasionally coming from students and teachers who attended consultation meetings at the start of the year.

On March 3, activist groups Anakbayan and the National Union of Students of the Philippines wrote Valencia to protest the lack of consultation about the new academic calendar.

They asked CHEd to suspend the academic calendar shift. “It does not solve the basic problems of students—skyrocketing tuition [and other fees] and lack of facilities,” they said.

They also sought a student survey to determine their sentiments.

The summer capital is host to 10 tertiary institutions, including the Philippine Military Academy.

Proposals to change school calendars, especially in Metro Manila, came after the Aquino administration announced its biggest infrastructure binge yet in the form of several projects that are predicted to cause monstrous traffic jams in the metropolis. Vincent Cabreza, Inquirer Northern Luzon