A student-centered learning institution under the supervision of the De La Salle Brothers will open this June for school year 20018-2019 within the Mactan development of property giant Megaworld and has been officially named “Newtown School of Excellence.”
Megaworld Cebu Properties, Inc. president Noli D. Hernandez said the school will initially offer classes for the nursery and kindergarten levels.
The Newtown School of Excellence is a partnership between Megaworld and the Lasallian Schools Supervision Services Association, Inc. (LASSSAI).
It occupies around a hectare of space near the entrance of Mactan Newtown along the Mactan Circumferential Road. Megaworld has spent P240 million since it started building the school in 2014, according to Hernandez.
La Salle-supervised school
Brother Narciso Erguiza Jr., LASSSAI president, said a La Salle-supervised school is one that they don’t directly own but run for certain companies or groups under the same educational standards.
A De La Salle school operates with the learners as the central concept. Two other criteria they require for a school they run or supervise are that it must be a Catholic and there must be a good percentage of students from poor families, he added.
Erguiza cited they ensure that at least 20 percent of the student population are on full scholarships in all their schools. He added he would want to raise this to 30 percent in the Newtown School of Excellence.
“This school will primarily cater to the children of township homeowners, particularly those who live in our condominium developments. We will also cater to the children of the expat community and residents of Lapu-Lapu City and nearby towns and cities as well as the children of those working in nearby businesses and business process outsourcing companies,” said Hernandez.
Technology-based learning
The target is to add grade levels by school year until the Newtown School of Excellence will be running on full capacity up to Grade 12.
Erguiza said the school can accommodate around 1,000 students when it is fully operational.
The Newtown School of Excellence will have two main buildings when completed. The single-storey Kindergarten Building is composed of three classrooms, a library, playground, and multipurpose hall. On the other hand, the five-story Elementary Building will feature 21 classrooms, audio-visual rooms, computer rooms, music room, home economics room, prayer room, library and learning resource center, auditorium, covered court, physical education instruction room, science laboratories, clinic, and its own canteen.
According to Hernandez, the curricula in the different programs offered at the school will be technology-based and geared towards academic excellence and proficiency.
