Free tuition for kids of Cordillera OFWs

By Dexter A. See

BAGUIO CITY— The Overseas Workers’ Welfare Administration in the Cordillera Administrative Region opened Thursday 80 new slots for scholarship grants in school year 2011-2012 for children of overseas Filipino workers.

Under the new OFW Dependent Scholarship Program (ODSP), the 80 scholarship grants will provide education to children of OFWs.

Last school year, the program granted scholarships to 26 children of OFWs whose families had been assessed within the low-income bracket.

The ODSP has five scholars in Abra, two in Apayao, 10 in the Baguio/Benguet area, four in Ifugao, four in Kalinga and one in Mountain Province.

OWWA regional director Evelyn Laranang said 80 more slots are allocated for the region in the coming school year – 12 slots each for the provinces of Abra, Apayao, Baguio/Benguet, Ifugao, and Kalinga. Mountain Province has 20 slots available.

Laranang said the ODSP is their newest scholarship program which aims to provide opportunity to deserving students, who are dependents of low income OFWs, for them to have the opportunity to finish college.