President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has officially declared May 16 of every year as “National Education Support Personnel Day,” following the signing of Republic Act No. 12178.
The new law highlights the essential role of Education Support Personnel in promoting the right to education, creating safe learning environments, and ensuring that public and private educational institutions operate efficiently to deliver quality education.
Education Support Personnel, as defined in the law, include individuals in teaching-related and non-teaching positions across schools, colleges, universities, and other educational institutions. This covers teaching assistants, registrars, librarians, doctors, nurses, school counselors, psychologists, clerks, and other professional, administrative, technical, and general staff who support students and teaching personnel.
“To ensure the meaningful observance and celebration of this day, the heads of national government agencies and government-owned and/or -controlled corporations involved in education, local government units, and private sector employers involved in education are encouraged to allow their respective personnel to participate in any related activity to be held within the premises of their respective offices or establishments,” the law states.
The Department of Education and the Commission on Higher Education are tasked with leading the planning and implementation of activities marking the annual celebration.
