San Enrique educators take 10-point mental wellness pledge

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San Enrique’s guidance advocates and child-support workers wrapped up their two-day STEP UP training on Friday, Nov. 28, 2025, with a moving 10-point pledge crafted from the insights and honest reflections they shared throughout the sessions.

Their pledge began with something many helpers struggle to practice, committing to taking care of themselves, too.

They vowed to listen more deeply, especially to the emotions children keep hidden, and to choose patience over punishment.

They promised to notice stress early on, keep classrooms and barangays free from stigma, and understand the real stories shaping each learner.

They also agreed to strengthen partnerships with teachers and parents, respect their own limits, reflect through journaling, and bring compassion and integrity into every decision they make for young people.

“With open hearts, we swear these commitments before our STEP UP community and the people we serve,” they said, ending the workshop with shared determination and warmth.

Day 1 focused on knowing themselves and knowing their learners.

The training workshop opened on Nov. 27 at the San Enrique Tourism and Cultural Center, gathering 34 guidance designates, teachers, barangay health workers, child development workers, parent-teacher association representatives, and Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office staff from 16 schools and community sectors.

Iloilo State University of Fisheries Science and Technology (ISUFST) president Dr. Nordy Siason Jr. welcomed the participants by underscoring that STEP UP supports Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 on good health and well-being and SDG 4 on quality education, affirming that “psychosocial care is foundational to building safe and compassionate learning environments.”

San Enrique Mayor Gian Carlo Niño Fernandez, schools district supervisor Dr. Julio Villanueva, and tourism executive Dr. John Patubo also expressed their strong support, noting that learner emotional struggles continue to rise in the post-pandemic setting.

Day 1 emphasized self-awareness and understanding learners as the foundation of effective psychosocial support.

STEP UP project leader Dr. Herman Lagon of ISUFST introduced the program’s vision and reminded participants that “mental wellness work starts with steadying the self.”

He guided them through reflecting on personal triggers, boundaries, and compassion fatigue, topics many said they rarely had the chance to think about.

West Visayas State University (WVSU) co-project leader Dr. Amabel Tangco-Siason led a developmental mapping workshop where participants analyzed the emotional and behavioral needs of children and adolescents in San Enrique.

Many described the activity as eye-opening because it finally put structure to the patterns they often observed but could not name.

The afternoon was devoted to hands-on psychosocial tools that participants could bring back to their classrooms and communities.

With Dr. Lagon and Dr. Tangco-Siason facilitating in tandem, participants practiced empathy mapping, mindfulness grounding, emotional inventory, and “fishbowl listening,” a structured listening technique designed to help adults stay fully present with learners.

These activities helped them see how support becomes more meaningful when they slow down, hold space, and withhold judgment.

Day 2 shifted the focus to stress management, coping strategies, and resilience, skills essential for both learners and those who care for them.

Dr. Tangco-Siason opened the morning by guiding participants through activities that helped them identify their own stressors and emotional patterns.

She reminded them that “teachers and child-support workers cannot pour from an empty cup,” a line many later wrote again in their journals.

Alongside six WVSU guidance counselors, she guided small-group circles where participants talked about the load they carry, including papers to check, family concerns, compassion fatigue, and that quiet kind of tiredness people rarely notice.

The sessions gave them space to feel understood.

By mid-morning, Dr. Lagon began introducing grounding techniques, coping strategies, and resilience practices that encouraged participants to slow down and reconnect with themselves.

He reminded them that caring for learners requires steadiness from within, saying, “We cannot guide our students through storms if we never acknowledge our own.”

The exercises, including breathing work, mindfulness pauses, and simple body regulation tools, became moments of release for many, helping them recognize not just their stress but also their strength.

The space created by these activities opened an unexpected doorway for deeper sharing.

People started speaking honestly about burnout, personal heartbreaks, and the emotional toll of caring for students who sometimes carry more pain than they can express.

The room shifted as walls lowered, shoulders relaxed, and the shared vulnerability wove a quiet sense of belonging among everyone present.

After lunch, participants engaged in reflective journaling followed by a quiet sharing session titled “What Keeps Us Whole,” facilitated by ISUFST guidance counselor Juna Mari G. Pacardo.

Participants spoke of the sources of strength that sustain them, including faith, family, meaningful service, and the learners who motivate them each day.

The day concluded with the formulation of a 10-point mental wellness pledge, collectively written from the participants’ insights and reflections throughout the two-day training.

It became a symbolic but deeply personal commitment to carry their training forward into classrooms, barangays, and families.

A long-term commitment to care emerged as the core theme of the program.

STEP UP, or San Enrique Training for Educators and Professionals in Uplifting Psychosocial Support, is a two-year ISUFST–WVSU–local government unit San Enrique partnership that strengthens community-based mental health and psychosocial support systems in local schools.

Developed in six phases with nine modules and delivered through quarterly trainings, STEP UP equips guidance advocates with research-based tools for supporting learners facing stress, bullying, trauma, mental health concerns, career questions, and challenges tied to poverty or marginalization.

Using inclusive modules created by ISUFST and WVSU experts, the program helps educators “step up” for their learners by knowing themselves, understanding others, and offering care grounded in empathy, ethics, and social justice.

Education and health agencies worldwide have increasingly emphasized school-based mental health programs as critical to preventing dropouts, self-harm, and violence, making local initiatives like STEP UP vital complements to national policies.

Through the 10-point pledge they wrote together, San Enrique’s guidance advocates affirmed that the work ahead is not just technical but deeply human.

They stressed that it begins with compassion that starts from within and extends outward to every child they serve. (Photos by Edeline Joy Brito, Parvane Mae Lagon, and Juna Mari Pacardo/PAMMCO)