Parents and educators in Victorias City came together to strengthen the role of families in children’s learning through a two-day community-based education initiative.

Thirty parents and home learning partners—nominated by the year level heads from Kindergarten to Grade 3—participated in the Pagpasad sang Edukasyon sa Aton Panimalay (PEP Talk) Program conducted on August 23–24, 2024, at Villa Victorias Elementary School.

The initiative was spearheaded by the Office of Honorable Derek Palanca, in collaboration with the VMC Foundation, Hope Builders Organization Negros Island, Inc. (HBONI), and the Neighborhood Parents Support Group–Victorias (NPSG), with sessions facilitated by members of HBONI-Victorias and NPSG to strengthen family involvement in children’s education.

Inspired from the Parent-Community Engagement (PCE), the P.E.P. Talk Program is a 2-day, 4-session training that aims to foster a culture of learning by instilling awareness and responsibility among parents as the first teachers in the community.

PEP also aimed to strengthen the capacity of parents and community members as stakeholders of education by increasing their knowledge regarding their roles in early grade learning, empowering them as future community leaders, and through project management, train them in organizing meetings and advocating for early grade education.*