A new nationwide framework sets rules for in-person class suspensions based on documented campus risks and allows schools, with the local chief executive’s approval, to resume classes before a local suspension ends.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed Executive Order No. 130 on Oct. 28, establishing rules for suspending and resuming in-person classes, activities and on-site work at public and private educational institutions and learning centers.
Section 4 of the order sets out three ways class suspensions can take effect, either automatically or by declaration:
- Automatic: An official hazard warning, advisory or forecast triggers a suspension when it meets the applicable threshold set in the implementing guidelines.
- Local: If no automatic suspension applies, the local chief executive may declare a suspension based on documented local risks and must specify the areas covered and how long it will last.
- School-level: When no applicable national or local suspension is in force, an authorized school official may declare one in coordination with the local chief executive if a documented assessment of campus conditions identifies an “actual or imminent threat to the safety, health, or welfare of learners and personnel.”
A school that declared its own suspension may resume classes in coordination with the local chief executive, but if a local suspension is still in force, the school needs that official’s approval to resume them early.
In either case, Section 5 requires a documented assessment showing that students and staff can return safely, including “safe and unimpeded access to and from the institution.”
Beyond campus-level decisions, EO 130 amends Executive Order No. 66, which President Benigno Aquino III signed in 2012, as it applies to suspensions of in-person classes, activities and on-site work at educational institutions and learning centers.
Section 1 of the 2012 order tied automatic class suspensions to PAGASA’s typhoon signals, from preschool at Signal No. 1 to all levels at Signal No. 3 or higher.
Under EO 130, however, an official hazard warning, advisory or forecast triggers an automatic suspension if it meets the applicable threshold set in the implementing guidelines.
Section 2 of the 2012 order also allowed local chief executives to declare suspensions when PAGASA had issued no typhoon signal, particularly in flood-prone or high-risk areas.
Under the new framework, local chief executives may declare a suspension when no automatic suspension applies, but they must base the decision on documented local risks and specify where it applies and how long it will last.
After an automatic or local suspension, classes, activities and on-site work automatically resume when the suspension period ends or the applicable hazard notice or declaration is lifted, downgraded or otherwise ceases to apply, provided the required safety inspections are complete.
The president may also order suspensions or resumptions nationwide or in specified areas.
During a suspension of in-person classes, schools must continue instruction through alternative arrangements when feasible and appropriate.
Meanwhile, if on-site work is suspended, schools must use alternative work arrangements where practicable and in line with applicable guidelines, unless the suspension order expressly provides otherwise.
To implement the framework, the Department of Education must work with other agencies to issue guidelines covering hazard thresholds and procedures within 30 days of the order taking effect.
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