Gov tells scholars: Be good citizens

LINGAYEN, Pangasinan: Scholars for School Year (SY) 2020-2021 who received financial subsidies from the provincial government of Pangasinan were admonished by Gov. Amado Espino 3rd to be responsible citizens during the recent awarding of checks to the grantees.

Espino, along with Modesto Operania, dirctor of the Provincial Sports Development and Management Council, and Dr. Irmina Francisco, chief administrative officer of the governor’s offfice, led the awarding ceremony at the Pangasinan Training and Development Center 2 in Lingayen.

Espino said the provincial scholarship program started by his father and former governor

Amado Espino Jr. aims to backstop young Pangasinenses for a brighter future.

For SY 2020-2021, 300 slots were allotted for qualified scholars, including academically highly competent scholars (180) and automatic qualifiers (30), indigenous-people scholars (20), Muslim scholars ( 10), sports scholars (40) and arts scholars ( 20).

All scholars will receive P10,000 in financial grant for every term or semester or P20,000 for an academic year.

If the receiving school implements a trimester program, the subsidy will be distributed in the first and third semester.

To date, there are over 2,000 scholars of the provincial government.

Because of the coronavirus, Francisco said qualifying examinations for applicants were called off,p and that the provincial government also implemented online application in addition to the regular application at the governor’s office.

She described the 2020 to 2021 scholars as the “cream of the crop.”

Sangguniang Panlalawigan (Provincial Council) member Jeremy Agerico Rosario, chairman of the education committee, authored Provincial Ordinance 205-2017, which institutionalized the Pangasinan scholarship program.

Garyll Rose Delson expressed her gratitude to the governor for his support for youth development through the program.

Delson was among the 19 scholars of the National Commission for Indigenous People who received the financial grant on August 26.