MANILA, Philippines – A lot, if not all, educational institutions have felt the crunch of the economic crisis wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Letran is no exception.
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And while the pontifical school headed by its Rector-President Fr. Clarence Marquez, OP implemented belt-tightening measures, including that in its athletic department, it has not really disassembled its whole sports team in general.
“Our rector president has set the limit for scholarship grants at 372, which is usually the same number of athletes we field yearly in the NCAA,” said Jhennie Caldito-Villar, Letran spokesperson and directress of the office of alumni and public affairs, on Thursday.
“It showed that Fr. Marquez still has a heart for the athletes despite these trying times,” she added.
Villar clarified that the athletes that will be cut are those from the institution-initiated teams or events like its grassroots pool and juniors team B.
For non-performing athletes or teams, Letran already has guidelines in place for years now.
“We have already implemented cuts in their scholarship grants in the past, which were performance and academic-based. It can be that the 75% scholarship will become 100% or 100% to 75%,” said Villar.
“As for the dorm, it’s a necessity to cut down on our dorm because of the new normal,” she added.
Despite this, Letran has vowed to be a full participant in the NCAA, which it will host this year.