BACOLOD City – The tuition fee of the Bacolod City College (BCC) may increase once it becomes a Commission on Higher Education (CHED)-accredited local college.
But Mayor Evelio Leonardia – who promised that there will be no tuition increase at the BCC as long as he is the local chief executive – was not worried.
The BCC has a P30 rate per subject unit since its establishment in 1997.
Leonardia said he is looking forward to CHED recognizing the BCC as a higher education institution so that the school will be covered by the national government’s free tuition program under Republic Act (RA) 10931, or the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act.
RA 10931 makes tuition and other school fees free in state universities and colleges, local universities and colleges, and state-run technical-vocational institutions in the Philippines.
Availing BCC of the free tuition is the “urgent” reason that the Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) approved the ordinance which revised the city-run school’s charter.
The ordinance reestablished the organizational structure of BCC, thus creating new positions.
It also redefined the functions and composition of the college governing board and other offices and committees, pursuant to the mandate of BCC being a higher education institution.
Councilor Renecito Novero said he authored the ordinance to “harmonize the administrative regulations issued by the concerned agencies that affect the operation of the local college.”/PN
