SIXTEENTH CONGRESS )
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES )
First Regular Session )

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Introduced by Representative Rufus B. Rodriguez andy:
Representative Maximo B. Rodriquez, Jr.

3547S

EXPLANATORY NOTE

House Bill No.

The promotion of mental health among the youth, especially among the school
children, Is often neglected because of the focus given to the academic or curricular
development in aiming to upgrade and improve the quality of education in our country. The
government and its partners in the academe, however, fall to realize that the intellectual
evelopment of a child can only prosper if he is given the adequate mental health services.

Despite the immense need for counseling professionals, we have a very limited
number of school-based counselors, psychologists and social workers who are serving in
‘our educational institutions.

‘This bill seeks to recruit, hire, and train additional school-based guidance counselors,
psychologists, school social workers and mental health personnel, This will enable the
Phudents to avail of services that will attend to their mental, emotional and developmental
Reeds. Hence, we can expect a holistic approach to the development and learning of our
students.

The immediate approval of this bill is earnestly sought

RUFUS B. RODRIGKEZ

MAXIMO B. orm JR.


SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
First Regular Session

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Introduced by Representative Rufus B. Rodriguez and
Representative Maximo B. Rodriguez, Jr.

House Bill No. _ 354 i

AN ACT
TO RECRUIT, HIRE, AND TRAIN ADDITIONAL SCHOOL-BASED GUIDANCE
COUNSELORS, PSYCHOLOGISTS, SCHOOL SOCIAL WORKERS AND MENTAL
HEALTH PERSONNEL

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress
assembled:

SECTION 1. Short Title. — This Act shall be known as the “Students’ Guidance
Counseling Act’.

SEC 2. Purposes. — The purposes of this Act are to:

(1) help elementary and secondary institutions to recruit, train, and hire additional
school-based mental health personnel, counselors, social workers, and school
psychologists;

(2) help adequately address the mental, emotional, and developmental needs of
elementary and secondary school students;

(3) remove the emotional, behavioral, and psycho-social barriers to leaming so as to
enhance the classroom preparedness and ability to learn of students;

(4) support school staff and teachers in improving classroom management, conducting
behavioral interventions to improve school discipline, and developing the awareness
and skills to identify early warning signs of violence and the need for mental health
services; and,

support parents in improving the school behavior and academic success of their
children

6

SEC 3. Definitions. — For purposes of this Act —

(1) “Mental Health and Student Service Provider” includes a qualified school counselor,
school psychologist, or school social worker.

(2) "Mental Health and Student Services” includes direct, individual, and group
services provided to students, parents, and school personnel by mental health and
student service providers, or the coordination of prevention strategies in schools or
community-based programs.

(3) “School Counselor” refers to an individual who has documented competence in
counseling children and adolescents in a school setting and who:

(A) possesses licensure or certification granted by a professional regulatory
authority;

(B) in the absence of such licensure or certification, possesses national certification
in school counseling or a specialty of counseling granted by an independent
professional organization; or,

(C) holds a minimum master’s degree in school counseling.

(4) “School Psychologist’ refers to an individual who possesses a minimum of sixty
(60) graduate semester hours in school psychology from an institution of higher
education and has completed one thousand two hundred (1,200) clock hours in a


supervised school psychology intemship, of which six hundred (600) hours shell De
in the school setting:
(5) “School Social Worker’ refers to an individual who. holds a master’s degree in social
work,

SEC 4. Hiring of additional schootbased counselors, psychologists and social workers. —
Fhe Secretary of Education shall, subject to existing rules and regulations of the Department
of Education, the Civil Service Commission and the Department of Budget and
Management, provide for hiring of additional school based counselors, psychologists ane
social workers such that each public elementary and secondary school will have at least
free (8) counselors, one (1) psychologist, one (1) social worker, and other mental health
and students service providers when the need arises.

SEC 5. Guidelines. - The Secretary of Education shall, one hundred twenty (120) days after
the enactment of this Act, issue the necessary guidelines in the selection, recruitment and
hiring of personnel and the nature and scope of the mental health and services to be offered
to students.

SEC 6. Appropriations. - There shall be appropriated from the National Treasury such sums
as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act.

SEC 7. Separebility Clause. - if any provision or part hereof is held invalid oF
ineonstituttonal, the remainder of the law or the provision not otherwise affected shall
remain valid and subsisting.

SEC 8, Repealing Clause. - Any law, presidential decree or issuance, executive order,
letter of instruction, administrative order, rule or regulation contrary to or inconsistent with the
provisions of this Act is hereby modified or amended accordingly.

SEC 7. Effectivty. - This Act shall take effect fteen (16) days after its publication in at least
two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,