The San Nicolas Gapan Development Foundation, Inc. (SNGDFI) was formally established and registered at the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 25, 2003. It was conceptualized and organized under the leadership of Dr. Raul P. de Guzman, together with 14 respected, dedicated and committed residents and former residents of San Nicolas, Gapan, Nueva Ecija. Dr. de Guzman himself hails from San Nicolas, Gapan and attended the San Nicolas Elementary Public School in the 1930s.


PUBLIC SCHOOL FACILITIES/ CLASSROOMS

The primary mission of the Foundation is to assist the local government of Gapan in its efforts to promote people empowerment through various community-based programs. The support that the community receives is often financial but the task of the foundation is to make sure that they are funding the most urgent projects to help uplift the conditions of the people who live within the community. One of the programs identified by members of the foundation is the improvement of the facilities of the Elementary Public Schools. They have recognized that the National Government only pays for the salaries of school personnel. Budgets for the improvement of the school’s facilities is almost non-existent. Even the teachers have to collect, even a meager amount, from the students to pay for the electric and water consumption of the schools. Occasionally, the schools receive funding for the upgrade of their facilities from the local government or from development funds of their Congressional representative. There are other private groups that have recognized the dire conditions of the schools and have helped build some classrooms. Often times, the funds are insufficient to cater to the growing number of students that attend the schools and due to the very limited funds, the officials have to prioritize the allocation of funds in the district.

The Foundation started its assistance by financing the construction of the Grandstand of the San Nicolas Elementary School, which the school uses for gatherings and commencement exercises. It is also helping build the home economics building that can accommodate two classes during regular days. The conditions of the classrooms are in such dilapidated state that some of the rooms have to be condemned as it is deemed unsuitable for learning and poses a safety problem for the young students. Improvement of the environment for learning has a big impact on the students, which allows them to concentrate more and be motivated to do their coursework. It is also the hope of the Foundation to be able to establish a computer/ audio-visual center within the school so students may avail of the latest educational tools to make them more competitive in their learning efforts.

The Foundation hopes to adopt more schools and provide them with the opportunity to improve their facilities, with upgrades and new classrooms, and also avail of new technologies to make them more competitive. This will also motivate more students to stay in school and complete their coursework to move to higher grade levels.


LIVELIHOOD SCHOLARSHIPS

The Livelihood Scholarship project was launched in 2004 to allow individuals to develop livelihood skills to earn a decent living. A total of 31 livelihood scholars were chosen and enrolled at NEUST. The scholars, all high school graduates, took courses in Cosmetology (3), Auto Mechanic (6), Electricity (9) and thirteen others whose courses were not specified. They were provided free tuition fees and daily transportation allowances. Total disbursements amounted to P 34,000. The funds were administered and the scholars were supervised by Trustee, Rosario R. Roque, a resident and a former full-time teacher at San Nicolas Central Elementary School. She was also designated as the overall coordinator of the Livelihood scholars.