Alabang, Muntinlupa – De La Salle Santiago Zobel School (DLSZ) signed a contract with top developer, Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI) for an extension campus in Vermosa, Imus, Cavite. Br. Bernard S. Oca FSC, DLSZ President and Br. Raymundo B. Suplido, DLSZ Board of Trustee graced the contract signing ceremony together with ALI President, Bernard Vincent Dy, and Anna Ma. Margarita B. Dy, ALI Senior Vice President.
DLSZ Administrators, student and parent representatives and the employees of the school were present to witness the contract signing.
ALI donated the land and seed money to fund the construction of a school building. Vermosa, regarded as the future city of the south is a sprawling 700-hectare estate, master-planned to offer fundamental mixed-use components – from a wide range of horizontal residential options, sports-themed retail with healthy dining selections, a central business district, hotel, educational institutions, and entertainment that are seamlessly integrated with generous open spaces that allow opportunities for social convergence and encourage efficient movement in everyday life. Redefining suburban living, this future city will showcase the Vermosa Sports and Lifestyle Complex that will house world-class sports facilities including an Olympic size pool, oval track, motocross track, bike skills trail, and the country’s first Sports Science Laboratory.
The DLSZ-Vermosa Campus is envisioned to be the trailblazer in technology-supported learning in Philippine education. True to its vision, the DLSZ-Vermosa Campus will provide a world-class, learner-centered environment that produces lifelong learners who are reflective, creative, critical thinkers and problem-solvers in a transformative and innovative learning environment. It will be a campus that will promote green architecture through its facilities and structural designs.
Further, it will continue to uphold a dynamic learning community through its existing student programs in the fields of academics, science and technology, sports, arts and music. These programs inspire curiosity and promote the attainment of developmental and holistic learning. Further, the Vermosa Sports and Lifestyle Complex will serve as a training facility to DLSZ’s athletes who will represent the Philippines in local and international competitions. It will also build a church within the school site and open it to the public for regular Sunday Masses.
This move is also one of DLSZ’s visions in ensuring that Lasallian education is more accessible to a greater majority of students in southern Mega Manila. In order to fully transition to the implementation of the K to 12 program, it will also offer different tracks and strands for the Senior High School program. These are: STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), ABM (Accountancy, Business and Management) and HUMSS (Humanities and Social Sciences) Strands under the Academic Track and the Arts and Design Track.
DLSZ is a member of De La Salle Philippines (DLSP), a new district-wide network of 16 Lasallian schools in the country. For 37 years, it has been producing outstanding Lasallians who are responsible citizens in the service of church and country. According to its founder, St. John Baptist de La Salle, the main purpose of every Christian school is to rear children in accordance with the teachings of Christ as found in the gospel. Thus, DLSZ, as an academic community, fosters not only academic excellence but also the spiritual and moral maturity of the individual.
The DLSZ-Vermosa campus will continue what has been started in the DLSZ-Alabang campus, that is, to offer Lasallian excellence in education thereby developing globally-ready students.
The DLSZ-Vermosa Campus hopes to open earliest January 2017 for Grades 11 and 12.