DepEd Press Release (Stronger, safer schools for learners and teachers through DepEd–UP Disaster Resilience partnership)

 

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Stronger, safer schools for learners and teachers through DepEd–UP Disaster Resilience partnership

 

MAKATI CITY, 19 January 2026 — Public school Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM) coordinators, teachers, and learners nationwide are set to immediately benefit from new disaster preparedness training and science-based tools following the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the Department of Education and the University of the Philippines recently in Diliman, Quezon City. 

The partnership is intended to address persistent gaps faced by schools in disaster-prone areas, particularly the lack of localized hazard data, structured training, and coordinated emergency protocols, which often leaves teachers and learners vulnerable during floods, earthquakes, and other calamities.  

Under the agreement, UP will provide technical and scientific expertise to support DepEd’s disaster risk reduction, climate change adaptation and mitigation, and emergency response efforts across public schools nationwide. 
 

Education Secretary Sonny Angara said the partnership aims to ensure that schools are better prepared before disasters strike, so learning disruptions are minimized.

“Hindi dapat napuputol ang pagkatuto dahil lang sa kakulangan ng paghahanda. Sa tulong ng UP, through its research and public service mandate, masisiguro nating handa ang ating mga guro at mag-aaral. May tamang kaalaman, datos, at sistema para manatiling ligtas at makabangon agad kapag may sakuna,” Angara said.

As an immediate step of the partnership, DepEd is encouraging DRRM coordinators nationwide to enroll in the relaunched Fundamentals of Resilience Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) offered by the UP Resilience Institute (UPRI) in partnership with UP Open University. The free, fully online courses will run from January 26 to February 20, 2026, and will cover the basics of resilience as well as hazard and risk assessment.

UP President Angelo Jimenez said the collaboration underscores the role of UP, as the national university, in protecting learners and teachers, especially as climate-related risks intensify.  

The partnership will be implemented through the UPRI, led by Executive Director Mahar Lagmay, which will support DepEd in conducting multi-hazard risk assessments, developing localized hazard maps, integrating disaster risk reduction and climate adaptation modules into learning platforms, and designing a digital hazard risk platform and monitoring systems. 
 

For DepEd schools, the immediate impact is clearer access to training, data, and tools that make disaster preparedness more practical, reducing uncertainty for teachers and helping ensure that learners can return to safe classrooms as quickly as possible after emergencies.

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