The mentoring of public school principals by notable managers and leaders can go a long way in improving the quality of education in the country.

With this in mind, House Speaker Martin Romualdez hailed on Monday, Sept. 1 the Department of Education's (DepEd) partnership with Security Bank Foundation Inc. (SBFI) and Security Bank Corporation (SBC) for rhe Mentoring Future Leaders for Nation-Building Program.

Romualdez, Leyte 1st district congressman, emphasized the importance of equipping local public school principals with advanced leadership and management skills, which they can then pass on to teachers in their respective schools in a bid to enhance students' learning outcomes.

“This is a critical collaboration between government and the private sector to transform our education system. Our principals serve as frontline leaders of teachers and stewards of students, and empowering them means empowering the future of our children,” Romualdez said.

“Napakahalaga ng ganitong pagtutulungan ng pamahalaan at pribadong sektor upang baguhin at paunlarin ang ating edukasyon. Kapag pinalakas natin ang kakayahan ng ating mga punong-guro, mas mapapalakas din natin ang kinabukasan ng ating mga kabataan,” he added.

(This kind of collaboration between the government and the private sector is very important in transforming and improving our education. When we strengthen the capabilities of our school principals, we also strengthen the future of our youth.)

Romualdez praised Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Sonny Angara for his leadership in pursuing the initiative in line with President Marcos' directive to leverage Public-Private Partnership (PPP)"programs to advance quality education.

“Secretary Angara’s proactive leadership in forging this partnership shows his strong commitment to the President’s vision of an education system that is modern, inclusive, and responsive to the needs of our learners,” Romualdez added.

The memorandum of agreement (MOA) between DepEd, SBFI, and SBC was signed last week.

At least 29 school principals from various parts of the country will participate in a mentoring program. It will run for three years in collaboration with Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle Philippines, the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom, and The HEAD Foundation of Singapore.

The initiative will merge local expertise with international best practices to help school heads strengthen their personal and professional growth, drive school-wide improvement, and deepen community engagement.

Security Bank has invested P1.9 billion in the education sector, including P237 million in 2024. Its flagship “Build a School, Build a Nation Program” has built 845 classrooms in 145 schools across 86 cities and municipalities since 2011, repaired 449 classrooms, trained over 36,000 teachers, and mentored more than 170 school principals nationwide.

Angara earlier noted that while addressing the classroom shortage remains a priority of the Marcos administration, investing in the professional development of principals ensures that infrastructure spending will translate into better learning outcomes.

The Speaker agreed, and said that Filipino school principals stand to gain substantially from the mentoring program.

“Collaborations like these are worthwhile investments to upgrade the competence of our school principals as leaders and managers, enabling them to cascade these skills to their teachers and ultimately to our learners,” Romualdez said.