IN PHOTOS | The Department of Education has successfully rolled out a strategic training initiative for over 3,600 teachers and school heads in Sulu to effectively implement the Revised K-10 and Strengthened Senior High School curriculums. Education Secretary Sonny Angara emphasized that equipping educators with a deeper mastery of the updated standards is vital to translating national policies into real classroom transformation and improving learner outcomes.
DepEd PH
Sulu’s schools division has formally transitioned to the Department of Education’s Region IX office, with the government approving 84 non-teaching positions and pledging to create additional posts for personnel affected by the administrative shift.
The transition follows the exclusion of Sulu from the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and its integration into Region IX under Executive Order No. 91, issued in 2025.
“Nakikipag-ugnayan din tayo sa DBM para sa paglikha ng karagdagang plantilla positions para matiyak na ang lahat ay makatawid at walang maiiwanan,” Marcos said during the inauguration of the Sulu Hall of Justice.
The Department of Budget and Management approved the creation of the Schools Division Office of Sulu and its initial staffing complement of 84 non-teaching plantilla positions.
Education Secretary Sonny Angara directed DepEd Region IX to oversee recruitment and appointments, prioritizing qualified personnel currently serving under BARMM’s Ministry of Basic, Higher, and Technical Education, subject to Civil Service Commission rules.
The new division office will comprise the Office of the Schools Division Superintendent, the Curriculum Implementation Division and the School Governance and Operations Division.
Separately, DepEd and the Sulu provincial government plan to construct 30 classrooms for Kawmpang Elementary School in a complex behind the Sulu Provincial Capitol. The proposed complex will have three two-storey buildings with 10 classrooms each.
Health caravan
Meanwhile, more than 1,600 learners, parents and school personnel received medical services through a government health caravan in Sulu, including dental care, vision and mental health screenings, and free medicines.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Education Secretary Sonny Angara led the YAKAP health caravan at Kawmpang Elementary School in Patikul. Learners and personnel from Martirez Elementary School in Jolo also participated.
The caravan offered general medical assessments and primary care consultations, along with dental services and screenings for vision and mental health conditions.
Participants could also register with the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth), update their records and obtain identification cards. Health orientations were also provided.
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