THE SILLIMAN UNIVERSITY (SU) Budget Office has lowered the whole university’s budget for meals during parties and other gatherings from Php100 to Php75. It is done in order to cope with the adverse effects of the Department of Education’s K to 12 program which is being fully implemented nationwide starting this SY 2016-17.
Marcia Luz T. Salcedo, SU budget officer, said the decrease is “an initial step towards helping [all departments] manage their meager budget.”
“We should spend according to our available resources to help us sustain through the years when we have to embrace the K-12 Basic Education Program,” Salcedo said.
The program which adds two years of senior high school to the present ten years of what is now known as junior high school drastically reduces college enrolment for at least two school years.
The university implemented the budget allocations on all expenses because of the low enrolment in its newly-opened senior high school.
According to Flordeliza G. Sillero, SU Senior High School principal, there are 815 grade 11 students currently enrolled, far short of the 1,800 enrollees expected.
“The effect of the…severe decrease of 1st year [to 4th year students] will last up to five years. More reasons to tighten our belts to get through…this storm,” Salcedo added.
The decrease of the budget for meals and all other operational and expenditure items apply to all, from the administrators to the students.
“What applies to one applies to everybody. Therefore, it [price adjustment] also applies to the acquaintance parties of the students in order to be fair to everyone in the university,” Salcedo said.
Andree Arrieta, governor of the College of Engineering and Design, said the price decrease is unnecessary because Php100 is reasonable.
“It’s not the money of the [administration], but the money of the students,” Arrieta said.
However, Salcedo said the adjustment is not far from the previous budget and that it is a way to help parents and students manage their funds.
“With limited resources to allocate to units and departments, the university still has…facilities to maintain and teachers to pay, among others,” Salcedo said.
Aside from the food budget decrease, the university is allocating its resources across all university units and departments to cut back on expenses. These resources also include teachers.
According to Sillero, almost all faculty members of the senior high are from the university faculty.
“Every faculty is considered a university faculty not just of the…college or department. So, if one unit of the university needs the service of the faculty, then they will need to accept,” Sillero added.
