US Navy story by CM2 Loui Jean Aguinaldo

BROOKE’S POINT, Philippines – Carlos M. Virrey National High School hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for a new schoolhouse project led by Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 3 in Barangay Saraza, Brooke’s Point, Palawan, Jun. 16

The schoolhouse construction is a joint venture by U.S. Navy Seabees of NMCB-3, U.S. Marine Corps engineers of the 7th Engineer Support Battalion (ESB), Philippine Seabees of the 3rd Naval Combat Engineer Brigade (NCEB), and Philippine Marines of the Marine Battalion Landing Team (MBLT) 4. Together, this multi-national team will be completing an 18-by-7-meter building with two classrooms. The project consists of concrete footers and columns, concrete block walls, corrugated metal roofing, and interior electrical. It will provide a comfortable learning space for a typical class size of 40 students, a much-need increase in capacity for the school.

“This kind of project given to Carlos Virrey National High School is a project that will not only last today, but it will last tomorrow and the next generation,” said Brooke’s Point Mayor Cesareo Benedito Jr. at the ceremony. “We are very much thankful to all the U.S. Marines, Philippine Navy, and U.S. Navy for bringing this project in Carlos Virrey National High School, and rest assured that not only the teachers at the school will take necessary precautions on this project, but also the local government unit of Brooke’s Point will due give diligence for this project. Today, we are not only building for the future, but we are building a harmonious relationship, because we are now partners in developing our town of Brooke’s Point.”

Upon completion, this schoolhouse will be a long-landing asset to Palawan’s educational infrastructure and improve educational outcomes for generations of students. Additionally, the structure will serve as an evacuation center as needed for families displaced by extreme weather.

“We are excited to be here for this project. I am a firm believer that education is one thing that nobody can take away from you,” said Chief Builder Nana Obeng, the project’s Assistant-Officer-in-Charge. “So, for us being here building a school for the locals for [the] Philippines, we take pride in it because we see the future. The mayor said it, it’s something that’s going to go far to educate our sons, our daughters, and then hopefully in the future, we can come back and build more stuff. We appreciate that, and we are glad to start the project and get it done. The project is supposed to take roughly about three months […] with the help of the AFP [Armed Forces of the Philippines] our goal is to try to get it done early so you can start using the school.”

Not only will this project provide a tremendous value for the rural community, but it is an invaluable exercise of engineering interoperability between the U.S. and Philippine armed forces. The Carlos M. Virrey National High School project is the latest chapter in long history of U.S. naval partnership with the Philippines.

NMCB-3 is deployed across the Indo-Pacific region conducting high-quality construction to support U.S. and partner nations to strengthen relations, deter aggression, and enable expeditionary logistics and naval power projection. The battalion stands ready to complete assigned tasking and support Humanitarian Aid/Disaster Relief and Major Combat Operations throughout the area of responsibility.