Unfolding the Veil of Poverty in the Mountains: Experiences Drawn from Community Outreach Projects

Innovation is a key element in reshaping the landscape of education in the countryside; but teachers assigned in the mountains know that the hurdles of mountain life demand something more than innovating if their pupils have to learn. Pupils have aspirations, but life in the mountains is hard. Thus, teachers must walk the extra mile to put pupils back to the classroom. This paper attempted to narrate the experiences of a group of graduate students at the Visayas State University (VSU) actively involved in the conduct of community outreach projects in the elementary schools in the remote/mountain barangays of Baybay City, Leyte, Philippines. During ocular visits, essential information were gathered through in-depth interviews with teachers, parents, pupils and barangay captains. Interviews focused on socio-economic status of parents, school needs, nutritional condition and health habits of pupils, school population, etc. Profiling was important in deciding whether the school became the recipient of the outreach, since funding was completely dependent on the benevolence of private individuals, friends, graduate and college students who shared the advocacy of community service. For a while, the Rotary Club of Ormoc and the Phil. Carabao Center housed in VSU likewise extended their support. These humble undertakings started in 2015. Since then, the group had accomplished eight (8) outreach projects, demonstrating that charity, service, and genuine concern for the needy are deeply rooted in the Filipino vein. Undeniably, poverty is anywhere in this country and children in remote or upland communities are very vulnerable victims. The lack of nutritious food, and, worse, the absence of it at times as well as other basic school needs has affected their health conditions and attendance in schools. Worst of all, poverty has depleted some children with the much needed parental love and nurturing that must have been accorded them on account of their tender age.

Keywords: community, mountains, outreach, pupils