The University’s Senior High School, its largest academic unit by enrollment, is piloting the Strengthened Senior High School (SSHS) curriculum to be implemented for the first time this coming academic year. The original curriculum implemented for nine years was characterized by tracks (academic, technical-vocation, arts and design, and sports). The SSHS curriculum promises a streamlined learning experience that prepares students for both college and work, with the reduced tracks: Academic and TechPro.
In the June 2, 2025 joint memorandum signed by Department of Education Undersecretary and Chief of Staff Atty. Fatima Lipp D. Panontongan and Assistant Secretary Malcolm S. Garma, UST was included in the list pilot schools, both public and private, this School Year 2025-2026. In an interview with the Communications Bureau, Senior High School Principal Mary Erika N. Bolaños, PhD, expressed delight at UST’s inclusion in the list because “being a pilot school means DepEd sees the kind of work and commitment we put into education. Being part of this pioneering initiative allows us to contribute meaningfully to national educational reforms while ensuring our students continue to receive a future-ready, values-based education.”
Bolaños further added that UST’s “long-standing tradition of academic excellence, coupled with our strong sense of community and collaboration, places us in a unique position to provide grounded, data-informed feedback to DepEd.” She highlighted the interdisciplinary learning and close collaboration with the tertiary programs and industry partners as potential sources of experience-based data that DepEd may find useful in the eventual national rollout. Being UST’s largest academic unit with over 5,000 students, UST was classified as a “very large school,” a perfect venue to test the viability of the new curriculum in such setting.
UST, which has implemented six tracks/strands, including the innovative Health-Allied Strand, is now joining the country in the transition to a more streamlined implementation of the curriculum. The Principal allayed concerns on the loss of tracks and strands and the specialized training each brings: “The integrity of our strands and tracks will be preserved. [Instead of strands] we are offering pathways to their chosen career or tertiary program, providing electives that are helpful for them. Our programs, namely Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics; Music, Arts, and Design; Business and Entrepreneurship; Sports and Life Skills; Health Allied and Wellness; and Humanities and Social Sciences, are still there, strengthening the vertical articulation of our SHS programs with the University’s tertiary offerings.”
In an interview with the Communications Bureau, Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs Cheryl R. Peralta, DrPH stated that “the UST SHS program has always been structured as a pre-baccalaureate program. Since its inception and implementation in the University, our SHS strands have been aligned with our baccalaureate degree programs, allowing us to take advantage of our comprehensive degree offerings as a higher education institution to prepare students for their future careers, beginning with their basic education. We are fortunate for the opportunity to conduct inter-level collaborative planning sessions, particularly between baccalaureate and graduate programs, to identify gaps and overlaps in the various curricula and effectively plan curricular modifications to ensure attainment of expected learning outcomes and competencies. We have been doing these collaborative planning sessions since the COVID-19 pandemic, even when we were still operating online, and these allowed us to anticipate concerns much earlier and implement measures to address them sooner.”
Despite the reduction in subjects to be taught, VRAA Peralta added that “UST is committed to contextualizing the SSHS curriculum to our institutional approach and available resources, including implementing retooling programs for academic staff to ensure that they will be able to continue teaching in the SSHS curriculum.” The SHS Principal stated: “We are committed to a just and compassionate transition. We are engaging in a comprehensive capacity-building program to upskill and retool our faculty to respond to the curricular shifts.”
On June 11, 2025, the Senior High School rolled out its first retooling session, with more capacity-building sessions expected in the coming month.
Photo Credits: UST Senior High School Professional Development Committee
