Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Constitution Hills, Quezon City

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

2281

House Bill No.

Introduced by Representative ERIC L. OLIVAREZ

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Education plays a vital role in nation-building primarily
because it empowers the people to become active
participants in the transformation and betterment of society.
Education undeniably equips a person with knowledge,
intelligence and skills that serve him multiple purposes in
life. In the individual level, education improves a person’s
well-being and enables him to make informed decisions and
self-actualizations. In a more practical sense, education
allows him to be more competitive in the work field especially
now that the trend is leaning towards the ever-increasing
globalization. More importantly so, education has a very
crucial part in ensuring that there is equality in
opportunities for members of all racial, national or ethnic
groups of a nation.

The 1987 Constitution expressly recognizes the
importance of education in the nation’s progress and
development. As per Article Il, Section 7 thereof, it is the
policy of the state to give priority to education, science and
technology, arts, culture, and sports to foster patriotism and
nationalism, accelerate social progress, and promote total
human liberation and development.


Likewise, Article XIV Section 1 of the said Constitution
provides that the State shall protect and promote the right of
all citizens to quality education at all levels, and shall take
appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all.

Furthermore, the state is likewise cognizant of the
academic freedom accorded to all institutions of higher
learning.

In line with this policy, certain governmental bodies
have been mandated to implement strategies that will ensure
that quality education is being afforded to our citizens.

One of the many schemes being presently implemented
is the accreditation of private schools- elementary, high
school and college alike.

Accreditation is a means of promoting educational
excellence through self-regulation and peer evaluation.
Private accreditation refers to the accreditation being done
by the private accrediting bodies. The nature of the said
accreditation is voluntary.

Private or voluntary accreditation of learning
institutions in the country is classified into two — that which
pertains to basic education is governed by the Department of
Education (DepEd) and that which refers to tertiary or higher
education is regulated by the Commission on Higher
Education (CHED).

Accreditation, as more particularly defined in the
DepEd Order No. 08 Series of 2010, otherwise known as the
2010 Manual of Regulations for Private Schools for Basic
Education, refers to the process leading to the issuance of a
certificate of accredited status by an organized body of
educational institutions attesting to the quality or standards
of a private school or to any of its educational programs or
courses, and to the effectiveness of the management and
operations of the private school offering the program as
exceeding the minimum standards or criteria for government
recognition.


Basic Education as used in this context covers five
main programs, mainly: pre-school, elementary, secondary,
special needs education and alternative learning systems.
DepEd encourages voluntary membership by private schools
in accrediting associations by granting greater flexibility in
the exercise of government supervision and regulation to the
member schools as compared to those which are non-
members.

On the other hand, accreditation is regulated by CHED
when it comes to higher education institutions which
basically cover college and graduate studies, CHED
encourages accreditation by giving incentives and greater
autonomy to the colleges and universities that will meet the
criteria set forth by private accrediting bodies.

Voluntary accreditation positively drives _ private
schools, colleges and universities to go beyond the minimum.
standards and guidelines pegged by the government in light
of the promise of generous incentives, deregulation and
autonomy. As such there is an entailed assurance that the
education being afforded to our citizens is in fact the best of
what that these schools can provide.

This bill pursues to invite and persuade more private
schools to undergo private accreditation and thereby ensure
that the value and quality of education being received by the
Filipino People is optimized.

It is for the foregoing reasons that the approval of this
bill is strongly recommended.

exc- 2
ERIC L. OLIVAREZ


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Constitution Hills, Quezon City

SIXTEENTH (16) CONGRESS
First Regular Session

2281

House Bill No.

—_—_—_—

Introduced by ERIC L. OLIVAREZ

AN ACT
STRENGTHENING THE VOLUNTARY ACCREDITATION OF
PRIVATE SCHOOLS IN THE PHILIPPINES.

Section 1. Short Title - This Act shall be known as the
“VOLUNTARY ACCREDITATION ACT OF 2013”.

Section 2. Definition of Terms - For purposes of this
Act, the following terms shall mean or be understood as
follows:

a) School - means an educational undertaking
educational institution, private or public, undertaking
educational operations with an organized group of
pupils or students pursuing defined studies at defined
levels, receiving instructions from teachers, usually
located in a building or group of buildings in a
particular physical or cyber site recognized by the State
and specifically intended for educational purposes.

b) Private School - means a privately owned and
managed institution for teaching and learning,
established and authorized to operate certain
educational programs in accordance with law and the


prescribed policies and rules of the Department of
Education (DepEd) and/or Commission of Higher
Education (CHED).

c) Accreditation - means the process leading to
the issuance of a certificate of accredited status by an
organized body of educational institutions attesting to
the quality or standards of a private school or to any of
its educational programs or courses, and to the
effectiveness of the management and operations of the
private school offering the program as exceeding the
minimum standards or criteria for government
recognition. Accreditation shall be voluntary in nature.

d) Deregulation - is a necessary consequence of
voluntary accredited status whereby the private school
is accorded certain benefits and advantages as may be
provided for by the appropriate authorities and in
applicable legislation. Deregulation, however, is not
absolute, rather, it represents degrees in the
liberalization of rules and regulations applicable to
learning or school institution.

Section 3. Membership - Voluntary membership of
private schools in accrediting associations or agencies are
encouraged as a scheme to promote and improve the quality
of education in the country.

Section 4. Authorized Accrediting Agencies - The
following agencies enumerated below shall be the officially
recognized accrediting bodies to conduct accreditation
activities, to wit:

a) The Philippine Association of Accrediting
Agencies of Schools, Colleges and Universities
(PAASCU);

b) The Philippine Association of Colleges and
Universities-Commission on Accreditation (PACU-
COA);

c) The Association of Christian Schools and
Colleges Accrediting Association Inc (ACSC-AAI);


d) The Accrediting Association of Chartered
Colleges and Universities of the Philippines
(AACCUP);

Section 5. Federation or Association of Accrediting
Agencies - The Federation of Accrediting Agency of the
Philippines (FAAP) consisting of PAASCU, PACUCOA, ACSC-
AAI, and AACCUP as its members shall be recognized as the
sole organization to certify, pursuant to its general or
common standards, the accredited status of schools and
their programs granted by the abovementioned different
accrediting agencies. This recognition, however, is without
prejudice to the subsequent authorization of other
accrediting agencies in the future as deemed necessary or
desirable by the DepEd and/or CHED. The additional
accrediting agencies as may be determined by DepEd or
CHED or any other existing accrediting agencies shall be
required to join as members of FAAP to ensure order and
coherence in the manner of evaluation and accreditation of
schools, colleges and universities.

For purposes of this Act, there shall only be one
Federation or Association of accrediting agencies or bodies to
be officially recognized by the DepEd or CHED.

Section 6. Process Overview — Without prejudice to the
internal rules promulgated by the accrediting agency or by
the FAAP, the accreditation process shall be comprised of the
following basic steps:

(a) Institutional self-evaluation;

(b) Preliminary visit - This shall be done
within four to six months after the start of self-
survey and must be conducted by bona fide
member/ officer of the accrediting agency;

(c) Formal survey visit - This shall be done
by the bona fide member/officer of the accrediting
agency within a span of six months after
preliminary visit; and


(d) Decision by governing board of
accrediting agency - Within four months after the
last formal survey visit, the accrediting agency
may deliberate and decide on whether or not the
subject school should be granted an accredited
status in a particular accreditation level as
applied for.

(e) Any accrediting agency may notify the
school of any minor lapses, shortcomings and/or
failure to meet a certain standard or requirement
for a particular accreditation level and may give
the said school reasonable time and opportunity
to comply or meet the lacking requirement.
Provided however, that the lacking requirement is
of minor character only and can be completed
without great loss of time. Immediately thereafter,
the governing board of the accrediting agency
shall deliberate and evaluate and decide whether
the school has complied or corrected its minor
lapses within the reasonable time given to such
institution.

() The accrediting agency must submit its
decision before the FAAP for certification, within
four months from the last formal survey visit,
stating therein the comprehensive and detailed
report of the evaluation of a certain school and
stating clearly the standards used vis-a-vis the
comparative score of the school. Provided,
however, that in cases falling under paragraph
(c), the four month period to decide is suspended
until compliance or until the lapse of the
reasonable time or opportunity granted by the
accrediting agency to the school.

Section 7. Automatic Credit of Course Units - Private
schools need not be accredited. However, when students
transfer from private school to public school, course credits
completed at the former is guaranteed to be recognized in the


latter if they were completed at a state-recognized accredited
private school.

Section 8. Levels of Accreditation Status - There shall
be four levels of accreditation of schools, colleges and
universities to be conducted by the accrediting agencies to
be certified as such by FAAP:

a) Level I applicant status: for programs
which have undergone a preliminary survey visit
and are certified by the FAAP as being capable of
acquiring an accredited status within two years;

b) Level I! accredited status: for programs
which have been granted accredited status by any
of the member agencies of the FAAP and whose
status is certified by the latter;

c) Level III accredited status: for programs
which have at least been reaccredited and have
met additional requirements based on
criteria/ guidelines set by FAAP; and

d) Level IV accredited status: institutions
which have distinguished themselves in a broad
area of academic disciplines and enjoy prestige
and authority comparable to that of international
universities.

Section 9. Benefits and Incentives per Accreditation
Level - The benefits and incentives for the different
accreditation levels of schools, colleges and universities shall
be as follows:

a. Level I applicant status - partial
administrative deregulation.

b. Level II accredited status - 1) a full
administrative deregulation; 2) _ financial
deregulation in terms of setting tuition and other
fees; 3) partial curricular autonomy 3) authority


to graduate students without prior approval of
DepEd or CHED, as the case may be, and without
need for Special Orders; 4) priority funding
assistance; 5) priority for government subsidy for
faculty development; 6) right to use on its
publications or advertisements the word

“ACCREDITED”, and, 7) limited
visitation/inspection and/or supervision by
CHED.

c. Level Ill accredited status - 1) all the
benefits for Level II; and, 2) full curricular
deregulation.

d. Level IV accredited status - 1) all the
benefits for Levels II and III; 2) award of
grants/subsidies from the CHED’s Higher
Education Development Fund (HEDF), and, 3)
grant of charter or full autonomy.

Section 10. Validity of Benefits and Incentives - The
benefits and other incentives as mentioned in Section 9
hereof shall be available to the private school only for as long
as its accreditation status and specific accreditation level
subsists.

Section 11. Retraction of Benefits and Incentives — Any
benefit and incentive granted to a private school by virtue of
its accredited status and level may be withdrawn and
retracted, if after due notice, investigation, and hearing, the
DepEd or CHED, as the case may be, finds that the superior
standards of accreditation based on which the benefits and
incentives have been granted are not observed and/or
maintained.

Section 12. Retraction of Authority of the Accrediting
Agencies - The authority granted to any certified accrediting
agency may be forfeited, if after due notice, investigation and
hearing, the DepEd or CHED, as the case may be, finds any
irregularity, partiality and or bias in the evaluation and
granting of accreditation status to any school.


Section 13. Subsidy and funding assistance — The
DepEd or CHED, as the case maybe, shall allocate an
amount for the subsidy or funding assistance of
accreditation activities by the FAAP and its members for its
efficient administration and implementation and for the
grants of incentives and other benefits given to accredited
schools, colleges and universities. The said amount shall be
charged to the appropriations of the DepEd and CHED.
Thereafter, such amount shall be included in the annual
General Appropriations Act.

Section 14. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The
Department of Education (DepEd) and the Commission on
Higher Education (CHED) in consultation with the FAAP
and/or all the member accrediting agencies or bodies shall
promulgate the implementing rules and regulations for the
effective and immediate implementation of this Act.

Section 15. Repealing Clause - All laws, decrees,
executive orders, letters of instructions, rules and
regulations or parts thereof, which are inconsistent with this
Act are hereby repealed, amended or modified accordingly.

Section 16. Separability Clause - If any provision of
this Act is judicially declared invalid or unconstitutional, the
remaining provisions of this Act not affected thereby shall be
continue to be in full force and effect.

Section 17. Effectivity Clause - This act shall take

effect fifteen (15) days following its publication in two (2)
newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,