PH's first 12-story public school building to rise in Cebu City

The Department of Education (DepEd) has led the groundbreaking ceremony for the country’s first 12-story medium-rise public school building at the Don Vicente Rama Memorial National High School (DVRMNHS) in Cebu City.

The building, according to DepEd, will feature 42 classrooms, nine workshops, an audiovisual room, library, clinic, and fully equipped laboratories for home economics, computer studies, chemistry, and biology. It is also designed to withstand natural disasters.

Once completed, DepEd said it can accommodate 2,000 learners in a single shift, and can cater to more students who wish to enroll in special programs and senior high school. 

Education Secretary Sonny Angara described the modern facility as a “symbol of hope.”

“Sa 4,000 students na nandito, makakauwi na ng maaga ‘yung kalahati doon. At masusundan pa itong building na ito,” Angara said in a statement.

(Of the 4,000 students who are here, half will be able to go home early. More like this building will be built.)

DepEd is currently working on the construction of 105,000 classrooms to address the perennial classroom shortage in the country. It is beginning with a 15,000-classroom package currently being processed this year through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP). —RF, GMA Integrated News