MMSU students laud gov’t scholarship initiative at PBBM-GABAY ng Bayan launch
By Jareason Fabre
Around 1,000 students of Mariano Marcos State University (MMSU) lauded the national government’s scholarship initiative during the launch of the PBBM-GABAY ng Bayan Programs on January 23 at the Ilocos Norte Centennial Arena in Laoag City.
The event introduced 20,000 merit-based scholarships for higher education under the newly rolled out Bagong Pilipinas Merit Scholarship Program (BPMSP), aimed at expanding access to quality tertiary education for Filipino learners.
The rollout was led by Ilocos Norte 1st District Representative and House Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander “Sandro” Araneta Marcos III, representing President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., alongside CHED Chairperson Shirley C. Agrupis, DepEd Secretary Sonny Angara, and TESDA Director-General Kiko Benitez, showing a unified effort to strengthen education pathways nationwide.
The BPMSP targets top-performing senior high school graduates and aims to ensure that academic excellence is matched with sustained government support in higher education. Complementing the scholarship program, CHED TANAW, a national higher education data visualization and analytics platform, was introduced to help students select academic programs and institutions aligned with national priorities.
University Student Council Executive Chairperson Edriane Gerby Maloom expressed support for the initiative, saying the scholarship program gives deserving students more opportunities to pursue higher education.
The event also marked the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between CHED and the Pag-IBIG Fund for Project BALAY, which seeks to enhance higher education support systems through affordable housing, infrastructure development, and shared training facilities. It concluded with the oathtaking of around 800 newly promoted public school teachers under DepEd’s Expanded Career Progression System.
Officials of Mariano Marcos State University (MMSU), led by University President Dr. Virgilio Julius P. Manzano, Jr., were present to witness the program launch and show support for the initiative. MMSU faculty and students of College of Teacher Education and College of Industrial Technology, and staff of Research and Innovation and Technology units also helped organize the event.
Dr. Manzano said the government program advances MMSU’s agenda of Strategic Access and Equity, as it helps open more opportunities for the youth through expanded access to higher education. “Education changes lives. The program means we can now give more students the chance to SUCCEED,” he said, referring to the university’s SUCCEED agenda.
CHED Chairperson Dr. Shirley C. Agrupis stressed that the Bagong Pilipinas Merit Scholarship Program is rooted in access and hope, shaped by her own experience as a working student. As shared in the documentary film “Shirley,” she said the goal is simple and clear: to help make sure every Filipino family has at least one college graduate.
The PBBM-GABAY ng Bayan Programs, aligned with the Bagong Pilipinas agenda, show the government’s commitment to education by bringing opportunities, support, and clear learning pathways closer to learners.
Jan, 29, 2026 02:56:pm
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