Group seeks boost in scholarship funds

Manila Times/Manila

The Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations (Cocopea) has congratulated the newly-elected lawmakers and urged them to prioritise legislations that will boost scholarship funding and strengthen the quality of education in the Philippines.

Dr Jose Paulo Campos, Cocopea chairman, hoped that the new members of Congress will focus on raising the quality of education and provide more scholarships and affordable loans to students.

He added that government scholarships should not be limited to state colleges and universities. Lawyer Joseph Estrada, Cocopea’s executive director, has encouraged the government to work with private colleges and universities which are committed to producing globally competitive students. Estrada said Cocopea supports the K-to-12 programme despite the fact that private institutions stand to lose 150bn pesos in foregone tuition fees which would be incurred during the implementation of the law.

“Cocopea welcomes any opportunity to work with newly elected legislators,” he added.

Cocopea has a roster of more than 2,000 institutions among its five national member-organisations which include Association of Christian Schools, Colleges, and Universities (Acscu); Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines (CEAP); Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities (PACU); Philippine Association of Private Schools, Colleges and Universities (Papscu) and Technical-Vocational School Associations of the Philippines (Tevsaphil).