To: Undersecretaries
Assistant Secretaries
Bureau Directors
Directors of Services/Centers and Heads of Units
Regional Directors
Schools Division/City Superintendents
Heads, Public Elementary and Secondary Schools

1. To ensure equity in basic education, this Department reiterates its policy that all public schools are strictly enjoined to admit all prospective Filipino pupils/students regardless of sex, creed, socio-economic status, racial or ethnic origin, residency, political and other affiliation.
2. This policy is in line with the Constitutional mandate to make education accessible to all (Article 14, Section 1 of the 1987 Philippine Constitution) and with the corollary provision of Sec. 3, Paragraph 2, Chapter 1 of Batas Pambansa Blg. 232, otherwise known as the Education Act of 1982 which maintains equality of access to education as well as the enjoyment of the benefit of education by all citizens.
3. In view hereof, and for purposes of enrolment in the approaching school year and all succeeding school years, the entire public school system shall strictly adhere and observe the following:
   3.1 As a rule, no public schools shall refuse admissions, or shall allow delisting of Filipino pupils/students for any of the reasons cited above;
   3.2 Given resource constraints, public school may give priority preference for admission to those new entrants who are residents of the locality where the school is located provided that the reasonable threshold ratio of pupils/students per teacher of sixty (60) is to one (1) shall be observed strictly; and
   3.3 For the purpose of developing an education data base, schools may ask students to provide information on the socio-economic situation of their families. But the information cannot be used to restrict the admission of Filipino children into the schools.
   3.4 No additional requirement shall be imposed on pupils/students or parents other than those required in relevant DepEd rules and regulations.
4. Any one who is found violating this directive shall be subject to administrative sanctions.

References;
DECS Orders: Nos. 26, s. 1995 and 47, s. 1998:
Allotment: 1—(D.O. 50-97)

To be indicated in the Perpetual Index under the following subjects:
ADMISSION or ENROLMENT
POLICY
PUPILS
STUDENTS

DO_s2003_32