ASSUMPTION SCHOOL, PASSI CITY, ILOILO
Assumption came to Passi upon the request of the Auxiliary Bishop of Jaro, the late Jaime Cardinal Sin to the Superior General of the Religious of the Assumption, Mother Marie Denyse, in the late 60s. Three sisters arrived in Passi to open a school whereby construction of the building was undertaken and strongly supported by then parish priest, Msgr. Eligio Villavert. Prep classes started on July 6, 1969 and became a complete grade school in 1973. The sisters, besides running the school, helped in parish activities, taught catechism in nearby public schools, animated the liturgies in the barangays, and even initiated the spiritual formations of both the old and the young through the Basic Ecclesial Communities (BEC), the Life in the Spirit Seminars (LSS), Couples for Christ, etc.
However, in 1990, Lay Empowerment took effect. The R.A. sisters, whose number was dangling at that time, decided to home-base in Assumption Iloilo. The school remained owned and animated by the sisters but the day to day operation and management were on the lay administrators. This was a big challenge to hurdle then. However, the YES that the lay has committed meant embracing the many “self-dying experiences” as well. It was beyond simply running the school. It was owning the MISSION for Transformative Education, in making a difference in the lives of the young and forming them to become Christian men and women who will someday make a dent wherever they will be, in making the lives of others a whole lot better for those who need them, especially those in the peripheries.
The same goodness and blessings are being enjoyed by them today because there are kind-hearted people who share so that they can avail of an Assumption education. Thirty-one years ago, since the Lay assumed this, ASPCI has surely evolved and has become an educational institution to reckon with. She is now reaping God’s innumerable blessings.
School year 2019-2020 was a year of jubilation for Assumption Passi, it being our 50th founding year. Assumption San Lorenzo HS Batch ’81 (Ruby Jubilarians) sponsored 20 learners. The scholarship covered the tuition and miscellaneous fees of these learners from Grade 11 to 12. Each was given a school bag and scientific calculator. During the imposition of the ECQ here in Passi City last year, the jubilarians also sent an amount to buy some basic needs for the scholars and their families. Each of them received one sack of rice and essential grocery items. These blessings sustained their daily needs for quite some time especially that most of them were badly affected by the ECQ restrictions.
For school year 2020-2021, the jubilarians sponsored five more learners from the Junior High School. This was their own share to help the school to have more learners, especially that a big number transferred to public schools due to financial constraints. After their first 20 scholars graduated last May 2021, Batch ’81 still continued to help by sponsoring two more students this year.
Aside from this scholarship, Assumption Passi is also very thankful for the Transformative Education Scholarship from the Assumption Education for Development Fund. Since 2007, more than a hundred students became beneficiaries of the Transformative Education in the Assumption (TEA) scholarship, especially those who are academically inclined but are struggling financially. They were able to receive quality Christian education which will ultimately help them achieve their dreams in life. After seeing our TEA scholar alumni succeed in their chosen fields, we are confident that the new and next batches of TEA scholars will become selfless citizens of this country, ready to serve others anytime. Through this, we develop the sense of giving back or the ‘pay it forward’ mentality.
The year 2020 has been one of the toughest years in our lives especially as Assumption formators. Adapting to the new normal system in education has not been easy. It is indeed doubly challenging to form the young based on the Three Pillars of Assumption Education: Academic Excellence of Service, Character Formation, and Social Responsibility. However, we believe that God is a God of goodness. In times like this, finding meaning in hope is not a breeze. It’s difficult to be optimistic yet we realized that this pandemic does not only reveal our deepest fears and weaknesses, but also our strength and faith in God.
Indeed, this global health crisis has spared no one. The last two years greatly affected the school’s enrolment population. Hundreds of learners left for the public schools. It is a future of uncertainties but as our school thrust for this year says: “Because we love, we serve. We are HOPE!” The Administrative Team, Faculty and Staff believe that we will rise above these trying times. The school will continue to deliver quality Christian education to the young with the help of people who even from their own need, continue to recognize the importance of education as the seedbed for a better tomorrow and a better society to come.
We believe that we are one of the few communities around the country gifted and blessed despite and above the deluge caused by the virus. We give back by becoming that flicker of hope for our learners and parents. At the outset of it all, all that is left in our hearts from then and now are two words, LOVE and GRATITUDE.