The Plight of Students in Urban and Rural Areas: How Good Intentions Turn into Lifelong Change in Local Communities

What comes to mind when you think of children in school? Do you see kids with their hands raised for recitation in class? Are they actively playing sports with their friends or doing extra-curricular activities as guided by their teachers? Unfortunately, this is not always the reality, especially in the Philippines where economic gains do not always trickle down to poor urban or rural areas. You hear countless stories of students walking hours just to reach their schools in the provinces. With nothing in their tummies to sustain them, they lack the energy and focus to keep up with the day’s lessons. There are also many who do not advance to the next grade level because of too many absences due to sickness.

According to data from the Food and Nutrition Research Institute or FNRI, 25% or one out of four Filipino school children has been found to be stunted. This means that a big number of Filipino children are experiencing impaired growth and development due to poor nutrition and other causes.

These are just some of the challenges that the country’s educators face, which the Nestlé Wellness Campus advocacy program aims to address to help uplift the lives of Filipino families through nutrition, health, and wellness education.

Marigondon’s small but steady steps to wellness

The teachers of Marigondon National High School (MNHS) in Lapu-Lapu City in Cebu observed that most of their students lacked energy during their first class of the day. Curious, the teachers surveyed their students and found that Grades 7 to 10 were particularly underweight and were not eating a balanced diet. Meanwhile, for Grades 8 and 9, they noted the students’ irregular sleeping patterns. “Late sila natutulog at late gumigising,” Ms. Rose Ann Cañete, a Nestlé Wellness Campus coordinator, said.

With a population of 6,000 students in 2019, MNHS was classified as a megaschool that needed to schedule shifting to accommodate all grades up to Senior High School. With different class schedules, not all students experienced a flag raising ceremony.

To address these various concerns, Cañete and fellow Nestlé Wellness Campus coordinator Arnel Arong, said they did a trial and error of programs that would create an impact on the students. At first, they asked the students to share their healthy habits before class, whether it’s Science, Music, or Physical Education, ensuring that the program cut across the curriculum. But it was their “Wellness Day” that got the students all excited and pumped to dance with their friends, as a class, and even with teachers and other members of the Marigondon community. In fact, the parents, as well as officials from the barangay health office, police, and fire departments also participated and showed their moves in this one big and anticipated wellness event.

“Sa simula mahirap, pero kapag nasimulan na, madali na lang siya kasi motivated na lahat ang students, teachers, administrators at community,” said Arong.

The bayanihan story of Sta. Maria town in Iriga City

For Sta Maria High School (SMHS), it was not only serving nutritious food that they had to worry about. Located five kilometers away from the Iriga City center, clean water was not always available in their area.

“Wala talagang stable water supply ang school and the community. May water connection pero may oras at may araw lamang,” said Mrs. Joselyn Sayson, former principal and one of the key implementers of the Nestlé Wellness Campus program in SMHS. This was a major concern because students did not have water for drinking nor did they have any supplies to clean the comfort rooms, which ended up closed most of the time.

And so, in 2017, inspired to make a difference and improve their student’s quality of life and learning, Mrs. Sayson successfully convinced the officials of Camarines Sur to provide their school with a regular supply of clean water. They also asked for a stainless water tank, water jugs for each classroom, and big drums for the comfort rooms. The local government answered their call and arranged for trucks to deliver water to Sta. Maria twice a week, which the school has since shared with 1,600 households in their community.

Aside from clean water, the school also established an organic garden that the majority of the nearby households have learned from and copied for their own homes. “Ginawan namin sila ng module para sila mismo ang matuto at magturo sa mga bahay nila. Na-develop yung strong partnership between the parents and teachers,” explained Mr. Arjay Dimanarig, the Nestlé Wellness Campus coordinator of SMHS.

Dimaranig and Sayson have moved on to their new assignments as educators, but their contributions have truly changed many lives in Sta. Maria for good. “If the program would be implemented with all sincerity, the impact to the community will be lifelong. Hindi sya matatapos lang sa isang school year,” Sayson emphasized.

“Bayanihan stories like these encourage us to do more for the community,” said Ms. Arlene Tan-Bantoto, Senior Vice President and Head of Public Affairs, Sustainability and Communications at Nestlé. “As we strive to be a Kasambuhay for Good of Filipino families, we are deeply committed to supporting schools and communities in helping address their nutrition, health, and wellness challenges. We thank them for working with us in enabling Filipino families to live healthier, happier lives.”