Philam Paaralan provides new facilities at Severo High School

Severo High School Grade 10 students experience the comfort of the new facilities provided by the Philam Paaralan classrooms.

Barangay Burabod is a secluded area located at the foot of Mt. Isarog in Calabanga, Camarines Sur. Because of its remoteness and distance from the urban areas of the municipality, students in Barangay Burabod had to hike 5 kilometers to be able to reach the nearest school.

Upon visiting the area a few years ago, former Camarines Sur Representative and now Vice President Leni Robredo had a chance to speak with Burabod’s Barangay Captain Roberto C. Cabaltera. They looked for possible ways to bring education closer to students and put up a secondary school in the location. After enlisting the support of various LGUs and government agencies, Severo High School in Burabod – named after Eduardo A. Severo, who generously donated a one-hectare lot – finally opened its doors to 123 enrollees last June 2014.


As fate would have it, Typhoon Glenda hit the Philippines that same year, and devastated areas of Camarines Sur. Severo High School was severely damaged, leaving its teachers, students and entire community in dire need to repair its classrooms with the hope to make it far sturdier than the original construction.

Not known to the people of Brgy. Burabod, events were already unfolding to address their need. Philam Foundation was coordinating with the Department of Education in identifying areas that were most in need of new classrooms under its “Philam Paaralan” program. Its goal was to build classrooms in calamity-stricken and under-served communities. When Robredo explained the situation of Severo High School to Philam Foundation President Max Ventura, construction plans began to unfold.

Apart from rehabilitation work that needed to be done, Philam Foundation successfully built two new Philam Paaralan classrooms for Severo Highschool, in partnership with the Happy Hearts Fund.

“The act of physically building an educational structure is such a metaphor for deeper, more profound things,” explained Ventura. “Ultimately, we are building the knowledge of our youth and securing their future. Philam Foundation is thankful to all our partners and everyone who made it possible,” he added.

The new Philam Paaralan classrooms can accommodate approximately 100 students. “We were intentional in the way we designed these classrooms, taking into consideration the risk of calamities,” Ventura pointed out. “These classrooms are typhoon-proof and built using the latest steel frame technology. Students of Severo High school can now concentrate on their lessons and academic work with no need to worry when the rains come.”

“Aside from having typhoon-resilient structures, our classrooms are fully-furnished with water sanitation and hygiene facilities that will promote cleanliness and healthy living among students,” Ventura concluded.

Established in 1997 to commemorate Philam Life's 50th Golden Anniversary, Philam Foundation, Inc. is the social development arm of the Philam Group of Companies. It is a non-stock, non-profit organization committed to serve the less privileged in society. To learn more about the Philam Foundation, visit www.philamlife.com.

Philam Foundation partners with VP Leni Robredo for Philam Paaralan

Proximity to a school is a factor that hinders Filipino children in far-flung areas from acquiring and pursuing the education that they dream of.

Such is the case for the youth in the remote community of Barangay Burabod, Camarines Sur, where students had to walk for approximately 5 kilometers in order to reach the nearest high school establishment.  Some students even had to pass by an unstable rope bridge just to get to school.

To address this problem, Philam Foundation responded to the request made by then Camarines Sur Congresswoman and now Vice President Leni Robredo to build two new classrooms in the said Barangay.

The classrooms were showcased during the recently concluded classroom turnover at the Severo High School.



Thanks to the help of Philam Foundation, Vice President Leni Robredo, and the local government, the students, as well as their parents, now have a renewed sense of hope of reaching their dreams as they continue their educational journey aided by their new classrooms.

The Philam Paaralan classrooms that can accommodate 100 students, are fully-furnished, well-lit, ventilated, and complete with restrooms and water sanitation and hygiene (WASH) facilities.  They are calamity-resilient and can withstand up to 300kph of typhoon strength.

Philam Paaralan is Philam Foundation’s flagship program, which aims to build classrooms in calamity-stricken and underserved communities around the country in partnership with the Department of Education. From its original target of building 65 classrooms in five years, Philam Paaralan is set to complete 121 classrooms, almost double its target in just four years

In photo:  Philam Life Chief Executive Officer Ariel Cantos shaking hands with the Republic of the Philippines Vice President and Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDDC) Chairman Leni Robredo, with the Philam Foundation President Max Ventura

The Philam Group has pooled Php31M to finance Philam Paaralan

Many companies adhere to a sense of corporate social responsibility through educational and social programs that benefit a marginalized sector of the population or the society at large. One of these is the Philam Group of companies, which has been a staunch advocate of the importance of giving back to the community. This year, they pledged to do more by institutionalizing its annual donation to intensify its CSR efforts.

In a recent briefing with the press titled, “Doing Good While Doing Well,” Philam Life Chief Executive Officer Aibee Cantos said, “For the past 69 years of philanthropic success, we have been actively enriching the lives of Filipino families through our various CSR programs. This year, we want to do more by pledging a portion of our annual income to ensure our CSR programs continue to expand its reach and enable us to serve more communities.”

One of the notable projects of Philam Foundation, Philam Group’s CSR arm, is the Philam Paaralan, which aims to build classrooms in calamity-stricken areas around the country, in coordination with the Department of Education. To date, the program has constructed 101 classrooms for the past four years.

(From Left) Philam Asset Management, Inc. (PAMI) CEO Ferdinand Berba, BPI-Philam incoming CEO Surendra Menon, Philam Life CEO Ariel Cantos, Philam Foundation President Maximillan Ventura, Department of Education Secretary Armin Luistro and Insurance Commissioner Emmanuel Dooc

The Philam Paaralan classrooms are typhoon-resilient, fully-furnished and complete with water sanitation and hygiene (WASH) facilities that are essential in providing schoolchildren a healthy environment conducive for learning.



The Philam Group, composed of Philam Life, BPI-Philam, and Philam Asset Management Inc., (PAMI), has pooled their combined annual donation amounting to Php31 million, which will be used to finance more Philam Paaralan classrooms and other noteworthy projects. A ceremonial check turnover from the Philam Group to Philam Foundation was held during the event.

Also present during the event were AIA Regional CEO Gordon Watson, Philam Foundation President Max Ventura, Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Armin Luistro, and Insurance Commissioner Emmanuel Dooc.

In his speech, Commissioner Dooc commended the Philam Group’s selfless act of institutionalizing its annual donation that would benefit more marginalized sectors of society.

DepEd Secretary Luistro also gave a short message, thanking the Philam Group for being a forerunner in providing support to the education sector. The DepEd has been working closely with the Foundation in identifying schools that are most in need of new classrooms.

In closing, Cantos said, “Given Philam Group’s strong financial position, we want to be able to ‘do good while doing well,’ and we are happy to create a sustainable contribution to the community through the Philam Paaralanprogramme. In line with our thrust to empower more Filipinos to live longer, healthier and better lives, we want to build more classrooms and give more children a healthy education and a better life for the future.”

For more information on Philam Life and Philam Foundation, please visit www.philamlife.com.