With cura personalis and servicio fueling their efforts, the Ateneo de Zamboanga University Senior High School (SHS) community empowered young learners of their adopted community in Cawit Elementary School through the second year of their Levanta Comunidad Reading Tutorials program.
Held across four Fridays – February 21, March 14, 17, and 28, 2025 – the program sought to address the poor reading habits of Grades 3 to 6 students who are also affected by poverty related issues.
This has been a collaborative effort among SHS faculty and staff which started last school year 2023–2024 which grew with the involvement of student leaders from Samahang Filipino (SaFil), who volunteered as passionate reading tutors.
SHS AOCSA Coordinator Mr George E Lacerona Jr, shared that the lack of proper education traps children in a cycle of poverty and further explains that the services they provide are small but powerful steps to breaking that cycle.
Levanta Comunidad has also been made possible through the generosity of key supporters such as Unilever, which provided hygiene supplies, SM Mindpro, which helped with snacks during sessions, the Cawit Barangay Council, which sponsored final-day treats, and this year, Samahang Filipino, which funded transportation for the sessions.
Even with funding constraints, the SHS community rallied together. During a February 7 SHS Mass, Grade 11 classes donated snacks while Grade 12 students gifted school supplies. The SHS Library shared storybooks, the Guidance and Registrar’s Offices printed worksheets, and the Office of the Prefect of Discipline raised funds through calculator rentals to support transportation needs.
Levanta Comunidad is a great example of Compañerismo where the university bands together with mission partners for a noble cause. For service and the love of God, country, we light a path towards a brighter future for the learners deprived of opportunities.
