Roadmap for Catholic schools presented

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CEAP's patron traveling icon: Christ, the Teacher (Photo: Natalie Hazel Quimlat)

NAGA City, July 13, 2016 Whats the future of Philippine Catholic schools? This question and
more were answered during the annual Bikol Association of Catholic Schools (BACS) General
Assembly held on July 8, at the Basilica Hall, Basilica Minore de Peafrancia with the
presentation of the Philippine Catholic School Standards Project (PCSS) as a roadmap for the
future of Catholic schools [in the Philippines].

Through his discussion of the PCSS for Basic Education Project, CEAP Region IV Trustee and
PCSS Technical Working Group member Fr. Alain Manalo presented a guide to the program, a
brain child of CEAP, CEAPs Superintendents Committee, Phoenix, and CEAPs National Basic
Education Commission.

Gift to schools

Rooted in the Churchs teachings on Catholic education, the PCSS is a tool for self-
improvement. However, said Manalo, the PCSS is marked by rigor, [in its] pursuit of the
Catholic identity for it is a thorough examen of a schools Catholic identity, defined by 8
characteristics and elaborated by 5 main standards.
According to the priest, An excellent Catholic school is animated and driven by a philosophy,
vision, mission, and core values that embrace and preserve its Catholic identity. Schools are to
be evaluated via the rubrics given and are to be compared with a benchmark. Hence,
improvement will only stem from an attitude of honesty and true criticism.

Dubbed a gift to schools, the PCSS is a common pathway to the realization of [the] essential
identity and fulfillment of [the] mission [of] the Church.

Christ, the Teacher

In addition, BACS, being CEAPs Region 5 arm, is the first to be visited by and the first to
launch CEAPs patron traveling icon: Christ, the Teacher. The said icon, which shows the face of
the divine, is of Jesus holding the Book of the Gospels indicative of His teaching ministry and
Him being the embodied Word. His traditional blue cloak represents divinity, while His red
tunic expresses His sufferings, death, and resurrection: His victory over life and death. The
Greek letters Ho On means Who Am and lesous Kristos is [Christ's] Greek name.

As Manalo emphasized in his presentation, the first defining characteristic of a Catholic school is
its being centered [on] the person and message of Jesus Christ. Thus, the presence of the
traveling icon in the assembly does not only connote unity among the 1,500 member-schools of
CEAP in the evangelizing mission of schools, but more aptly, the icon serves as a reminder to
look to Christ, the Teacher as [one's] model and [to] live out the true spirit of the Gospel [by]
following His example.

More than 200 participants attended the annual Regional Assembly hosted by CEACAL
(Catholic Educational Association of Caceres and Libmanan) chaired by Fr. Rex Andrew
Alarcon, Naga Parochial School Director and BACS president. (Natalie Hazel Quimlat /
CBCPNews)

http://www.cbcpnews.com/cbcpnews/?p=80544 accessed on February 2, 2017