Fund for Assistance to Private Education

with the mandate of providing assistance to private education institutions in the Philippines.

History

FAPE was established in the sixties from the confluence of two factors, namely: the recognition of the crucial role of private education in national development and the campaign that had been launched by private school associations for the formation of an educational foundation that would address the needs of private education in the country.

In response to these factors, a perpetual trust fund was created under the initiative of the Philippine government with the help of the United States government.

FAPE was formally created by Pres. Ferdinand E. Marcos on November 5, 1968 by means of Executive Order No. 156, in implementation of the Project Agreement of June 11, 1968 between the Philippines and United States governments. The two governments therewith agreed to establish the Fund for Assistance to Private Education with the Private Education Assistance Committee (PEAC) as its trustee, and to allocate a Ps24 million irrevocable trust fund from the Special Fund for Education authorized under U.S. Public Law 88-94 as initial capital which would be augmented through donations, grants, and other transfers from private as well as public entities.

As of 1994, through prudent and expert management and through grants from the national government, FAPE is worth over Ps140 million. It has disbursed over Ps166 million worth of assistance programs since its creation. All disbursements have kept faith with the stipulations of the enabling instrument that the initial capital must be kept intact and unimpaired at all times, utilizing only the earnings therefrom.

Affiliated Agencies

FAPE was mainly responsible for the establishment of the Private Education Retirement Annuity Association (PERAA), a multi-employer trust fund presently providing a retirement plan for about one-third of al private school personnel, and the Center for Educational Measurement (CEM), the biggest private educational testing agency in the country. FAPE had also been a major source of logistic and technical support for the Federation of Accrediting Agencies of the Philippines (FAAP), the country's official certifying agency for accreditation, until it was spun off in 1988 into a separate agency which at present is the recipient of a regular Department of Education (DepEd) subsidy.

Landmark Projects

Faculty Welfare and Retirement

FAPE was crucial in the establishment of PERAA; the support extended by FAPE to PERAA consisted of seed capital and stewardship during the early years of this organization. The total monetary support to PERAA, including the project development phase, amounted to Ps2.7 million. As of 1994, PERAA has an investment fund amounting to over Ps900 million, with over 50,000 members from over a thousand participating institutions.

Educational Testing

A year after its founding, FAPE undertook a comprehensive guidance and testing program upon the suggestion of the private education sector. After consultations with experts, one of whom was Dr. Richard Pearson, president of the College Entrance Examination Board of America, FAPE developed the first Filipino scholastic aptitude test.

In 1973, FAPE entered into a contract with the then-Department of Education and Culture (DEC) to design and implement the first National College Entrance Examination (NCEE). In 1975, it completely turned over the administration of the NCEE program to the DEC, but continued to undertake a testing program designed to complement the NCEE. Eventually, a package of tests was developed, namely: The Philippine Aptitude Classification Test (PACT), the Secondary Diagnostic Test (SDT), and the College Scholastic Aptitude Test (CSAT).

FAPE's comprehensive career guidance and testing program eventually spun off into an independent agency known as the Center for Educational Measurement (CEM). FAPE provided the seed money for CEM and subsidized its operation during its early years.

CEM is currently the country's leading private testing agency with close to 300 active members all throughout the Philippines. it provides testing services to approximately 200,000 students each year.

CEM has provided a package of indigenous tests for Filipino students at the elementary, high school, and college levels, which is used for admission and placement, guidance, academic diagnosis, instruction, and scholarship. It has also formulated an aptitude test for nurses and teachers, as well as the National Medical Admission Test (NMAT), which it is currently administering.

Accreditation

Accreditation is a program of assistance which seeks to upgrade the quality of private education in all levels through a system of peer review based on standards of quality for faculty, instruction, management, and facilities. This function is being performed by three accrediting agencies, namely: the Philippine Accrediting Agency for Schools, Colleges, and Universities (PAASCU), the Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities-Commission on Accreditation (PACU-COA), and the Association of Christian Schools and Colleges Accrediting Association (ACSC-AA).

FAPE was responsible for bringing together the various accrediting groups into an umbrella organization known as the Federation of Accrediting Agencies of the Philippines (FAAP). FAAP has been designated by the DECS as the country's official certifying agency for accreditation. To date, it has been responsible for the accreditation of over 255 schools and 231 collegiate programs.

FAPE has assisted the secretariat operations of FAAP and the three accrediting agencies under it. FAPE has also given grants to FAAP which have been used primarily for the development of accrediting standards and instruments for pre-elementary, elementary, and high school; for at least 18 collegiate programs including engineering, teacher education, liberal arts, commerce, agriculture, law, nursing, hotel management, maritime education, medical technology, and dentistry; and for graduate education.

Research and Publications

Applied educational research is an important component of the FAPE assistance program. Many of the research findings published in FAPE studies have served as the basis for the formulation of major policies and have often been cited in major publications both in the Philippines and in other countries. A case in point is the Philippine Atlas, a FAPE publication which won a citation in the Frankfurt Book Art International Fair in 1976.

Research expenditures related to policy formulation have accounted for a substantial portion of FAPE's total research disbursements. DECS policies such as those on tuition fees, accreditation, educational service contracting, and government assistance to private education in accordance with Republic Act 6728, or the Subsidy Law, were also supported by research studies under the sponsorship of FAPE.

FAPE also has an established track record in research work regarding the relationship between the education sector and the world of work. The recognition of FAPE's track record in research studies of this nature is shown by the magnitude of financial support which was extended to FAPE by the UNESCO's International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP). IIEP's involvement in this project culminated in the publication of two books on this topic, entitled ‘’Higher Education and the Labour Market in the Philippines’’ published in 1981 and ‘’Employment and Career Opportunities: The Philippine Experience’’ in 1987.

Educational finance is another area where FAPE has undertaken intensive research studies. FAPE’s initial undertaking in this field was the production of the "Accounting Manual for Private Educational Institutions" in 1970.

There have been other significant research reports published by FAPE. Among these are the "Education Indicators" which is a compilation of educational statistics covering the period 1898-1990 and the "Directory of Specialists" listing the country’s experts in various fields who could be tapped as resource persons in their areas of specialization.

Aside from these research studies, the scholarly papers presented during conferences, seminars, and workshops funded by FAPE are usually published in its quarterly journal, the "FAPE Review". Aside from position papers and essays, the FAPE review contains seminar proceeding, policy pronouncements, and commissioned articles.

The other FAPE publication, the "FAPE Bulletin", reports on the major assistance programs of the organization. On a multi-year basis, reports are also published which provide an analysis of FAPE’s assistance program through the years.

One of the significant reports produced by FAPE was the publication entitled ‘’FAPE—The First Decade’’, written by Dr. Bonifacio S. Salamanca, who documented the achievements of FAPE from 1968 to 1978.

A coffee table book, entitled "Building a Nation: Private Education in the Philippines" is being produced by FAPE on the occasion of its 25th anniversary. This is the first full-length illustrated book which traces the history of private education in the Philippines—from the pre-Spanish times to the Hispanic era, and on to the American regime, the post-war period and the contemporary era—and expounds on the contributions of private education to national development.

References

* FAPE Media Guide