Public school teachers who serve as contact persons for Xavier University’s National Service Training Program (NSTP) are now eligible for grant of vacation service credits following the signing of a memorandum of agreement between XU and schools division superintendent Ma Elena M Borcillo.

The guidelines and policies on how the said teachers can avail of service credits were presented during a stakeholders meeting between XU and 11 school principals from the Department of Education (DepEd) held last month.

According to DepEd program specialist Romeo B Aclo, the granting of service credits to the XU NSTP contact persons is the first of its kind in the Philippines.

XU NSTP has an existing partnership with 16 elementary schools for its Literacy Training Service (LTS) component program.

Vacation service credits are used to offset absences of a teacher due to illness. One work day service credit is used to offset one day of absence.

Under DepEd Order 53, Series of 2003 on Updated Guidelines on Grant of Vacation Service Credits to Teachers, vacation service credits are “given only for work beyond regular functions or beyond regular work hours/days where payment of honorarium or overtime pay is not possible and in situations wherein extraordinary work is demanded from teachers including those which expose their lives to certain risks and for which monetary compensation is not enough.”

The stakeholders meeting also served to update XU partner schools on NSTP-LTS area work activities, namely, the tutorial learning program, scouting program, information education campaign on basic marine ecology, peace corner establishment, and social and financial formation.