The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) on Friday, Nov. 5, announced that the conduct of limited face-to-face classes for all degree programs in the tertiary level in Metro Manila and other areas under Alert Level 2 will now be allowed.
“In the IATF , we discussed in the other day that in places that are already under category 2 , we will allow now limited face-to-face up to 50 percent capacity in all degree programs in these areas,” CHED Chairman Popoy De Vera said during the ceremonial vaccination of tertiary students in Palawan State University.
However, De Vera clarified that limited in-person classes for all degree programs will only be possible under certain conditions. “The students, faculty and employees are vaccinated, they should have high vaccination rate,” he explained.
Another major consideration is the approval coming from the local government units (LGUs) to reopen higher education institutions (HEIs) in their respective areas. “The local government must be okay with it,” De Vera said.
Additionally, De Vera noted that the facilities in these HEIs “must be be retrofitted and inspected” by CHED, the Department of Health (DOH) and the LGUs.
“In schools like that, we will have second order of limited face-to-face which is to allow it in all degree programs so that there will be an incentive to get vaccinated,” ,” De Vera said.
De Vera said that this “would probably happen in areas where vaccination rate is already high like Metro Manila universities.”
Given this, he once again called on the students to “get vaccinated so we will have other options to open our classes.” He also urged HEIs to start retrofitting their facilities “so that we can slowly bring back our students to school.”
The IATF has announced on Nov. 4 that Metro Manila will be under Alert Level 2 starting Nov. 5 until Nov. 21.
“That is the direction that we are taking hopefully by the second semester or January or February, we can do this already,” he added.
READ:
https://mb.com.ph/2021/10/13/limited-face-to-face-classes-in-all-degree-programs-possible-by-early-next-year-ched/