Let’s run to help an Iskolar ng Bayan
Jenny* comes from a middle class family. She is the second of three children. Her father is an accountant and her mother is a housewife. Like most middle class families, a good education is the only thing that Jennyâs parents could bequeath to them. Fulfilling her parentsâ dream for her and her siblings, Jenny studied hard and was able to pass the much-feared University of the Philippines â College Admission Test (UPCAT). Jennyâs life seems to be so blessed until her father was laid off from his job. Because of his age, Jennyâs father found it difficult to find another company that is willing to hire him. The family tried to make do with the little savings set aside by Jennyâs mother out of her fatherâs income. Jennyâs father bought a second hand van and offered it for rent, but the income from such an irregular job was not enough and prices of gasoline, repairs and spare parts were too much. The family contemplated on letting the children stop schooling. UP may be the cheapest among higher education institutions providing quality education, but P1,000 per unit or an average of P20,000 per semester is still way beyond the means of Jennyâs family. Jenny applied for scholarships and luckily, the UP College of Business Administration approved her application for the Longterm Educational Assistance Program. The scholarship grant is a guarantee that Jenny would be able to finish her five-year course of Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Accountancy. The Longterm Educational Assistance Program is a continuing project of the UP Junior Philippine Institute of Accountants and is being administered by the UP College of Business Administration. Through the program, several UP-CBA students were able to graduate with honors, as the scholarship allowed them to focus on their studies. The scholarship program is unique because its funds do not come from grants from corporations nor from philanthropists. It comes from the students themselves. Every year, UPJPIA members come together to organize a fun run to raise funds for the scholarship program.