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1.  Pursuant to Rule III, Section 3.2 (13) of R.A. No. 9155, otherwise known as the Governance of Basic Education Act of 2001, the approval of the establishment of public elementary and secondary schools, separation of annexes, and integration and conversion of public elementary and secondary schools shall be delegated to the Regional Offices (ROs) of this Department.

2.  Conformably, all requests/applications for establishment, separation of annexes and integration and conversion of schools shall be forwarded to the Division Office (DO), for processing, review, evaluation and indorsed to the RO, for appropriate action and approval.

3.  For cost efficiency, the establishment of integrated schools rather than annexes or extension classes, is encouraged.  Likewise, there shall be an elementary school in every barangay and a high school in every municipality.

4.  The guidelines for the establishment of new schools, separation of annexes, integration and conversion of schools are enclosed.  The requirements for processing of documents for integration and conversion of schools shall be governed, where applicable, by the provisions of DECS Order No. 5, s. 1989 and DECS Order No. 91, s. 1999.

5.  All other issuances on the establishment, separation, integration and conversion of schools that are inconsistent with this Order are rescinded.

6.  Immediate dissemination of this Order is desired.

Adopted: 27 Aug. 2003


(SGD.) EDILBERTO C. DE JESUS
Secretary

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Guidelines in the Establishment of New Schools, Separation of Annexes,
Integration, Conversion and Renaming of Public Elementary and Secondary Schools

A. General Procedure

1.  All requests and applications for establishment of new schools, separation of annexes, integration and conversion and renaming of schools shall be submitted to the Schools Division/City Superintendent (SD/CS), for evaluation.

2.  The application and its supporting documents shall be reviewed and evaluated by the Division Review and Evaluation Committee (DREC) of the Schools Division concerned, in accordance with the provisions of this Order.  The SD/CS shall head the DREC, co-chaired by ASDS, and one (1) Education Supervisor I and the Division Administrative Officer as members.

3.  If the requirements have been satisfied, the SD/CS shall indorse the application for approval to the Office of the Regional Director (Attn: Assistant Regional Director).

4.  The documents shall be reviewed and validated by the Inspectorate Team (I-Team), created by the Regional Director.  The I-Team shall conduct ocular inspection and/or interview with local stakeholders to establish the real and urgent need for the school and validate the inspection report of the team.

5.  The Assistant Regional Director shall chair the I-Team with the Chief of the Elementary/Secondary Education Division as co-chair, and two (2) Education Supervisor II as members.

6.  When required standards have been met, the Regional Director shall issue the approval, copy furnished the Office of the Secretary, Office of the Planning Service - Research and Statistics Division, Financial Management Service, and the Bureau of Elementary Education, in the case of public elementary schools, or the Bureau of Secondary Education, in the case of public secondary schools.

7.  If action on the application is withheld pending compliance with certain requirements, the I-Team shall return the request to the Division Office, for appropriate action.

B. Specific Procedures

1.  Establishment of New Schools

1.1  The school head shall conduct a feasibility study to justify the establishment of the school.  The study should (i) show on the map the elementary schools within the service area of the proposed secondary school; (ii) list the names, addresses and enrollment of public and private schools in the municipality; (iii) list the names of the 100 prospective enrollees for the first curriculum grade/year, except in the schoolless barangays where a minimum enrollment of 60 pupils will suffice, in multigrade schools where a minimum of 15 shall be allowed; and special education centers where a minimum of three (3) types of children should warrant, as justified by the Schools Division Superintendent, otherwise the pupils shall be encouraged to enroll in the nearest school; (iv) show the school site plan with technical specifications; and (v) certification that the school to be established is not within the 2 km radius of any existing public/private school.  However, this may be waived when the nearby existing private and public schools cannot accommodate students seeking admission or which charge fees parents can not afford.

1.2  The feasibility study shall also include the availability of student places in the private schools participating in the Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private Education (GASTPE).  Enrollment in such schools shall be encouraged rather than the establishment of new schools except if there is no existing public secondary school in the said place.

1.3  The application must be supported by a certification on the existence and availability of a school site of at least one (1) hectare duly documented as DepEd property through a title or Deed of Donation or a contract of usufruct in favor of DepEd.  The required one (1) hectare school site may be lessened, with strong justification, to one half (1/2) hectare in urban or city divisions.

1.4  In addition to the other requirements of DECS Order No. 5, s. 1989 there shall be a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) by and between the Department of Education, represented by the Schools Division/City Superintendent (SD/SC) and the Local Government Unit (LGU) represented by the Municipal Mayor or the Provincial Governor, as the case may be, that will include, among others, the following provisions:

a.  The LGU shall provide funds for the operation and maintenance of the new school for at least five (5) years or until such time when funds for the said purpose are incorporated in the national budget.  The LGU shall also fund the construction of the new school building(s) and facilities, and provide the new classrooms with furniture, equipment, and textbooks.
b.  The teachers to be funded by the LGU shall be paid at the rates equal to those of nationally paid teachers or at rates approved by the Local School Board.
c.  A status report by the school head shall be submitted to the Regional Office through the School Division Superintendent at the end of each year.

1.5  The MOA shall form part of the supporting documents to be submitted to the Regional Director.

1.6  In the fourth year of implementation, the budget of the school shall be processed for integration into the regional/national budget and then to the General Appropriations Act (GAA).

1.7  A status report and the legal basis of the establishment of the school shall be submitted to the Financial Management Service of the Central Office as supporting documents to the application of the school for integration into the GAA.

2.  Separation of Annexes

2.1  The mother/main school, represented by the School Principal and the Annex represented by the Teacher-in-Charge (TIC) shall enter into a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) transferring responsibility and accountability for all existing resources, e.g. budget, teachers, and facilities, from the mother/main school to the annex and providing continued support from the mother school until such time as the school's funding requirement is integrated in the GAA.

2.2  A copy of the MOA shall be submitted to the Regional Office of the Department of Budget and Management, for information and appropriate action.

2.3.  The application of the annex for separation shall be supported by the following documents.

a.  The Secretary's approval of its establishment as an annex
b.  MOA between the mother school and the annex (item 1)
c.  Title of school site or Deed of Donation in favor of DepEd
d.  Copy of budget of the Annex from the mother school
e.  Inventory of facilities, furniture, equipment, textbooks in all the subject areas
f.  Plantilla of personnel including proposal for the item of Principal I and additional teachers and support personnel.

2.4  Other documentary requirements, as stipulated in DECS Order No. 84, s. 1996 (Guidelines for the Separation of Public Secondary Annexes), shall be complied with.

3.  Integration of Schools

3.1  The provisions of DECS Order No. 91, s. 1999 (Guidelines on the Establishment and Operation of Integrated Schools) shall govern the integration of public elementary and secondary schools.

3.2  In addition, Items, 1.2 to 1.4 of this Order shall be enforced in the application for the integration of Schools.

4.  Renaming of Schools

Schools shall be renamed in accordance with the provisions of DECS Memorandum No. 386, s. 1999 entitled Renaming of Schools.