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If God’s grace allows, a little school which started with 14 students barely 10 years ago will grow to nearly three hundred times its original population by 2018.
In a launching ceremony graced by Mayor Oscar S. Moreno as Chairman of the Cagayan de Oro Local School Board last Jan. 18 at the Centrio Mall Activity Center, Little Me Academy (LMA) President Percival N. Olandesca, Director & Principal Ramonette L. Olandesca and partners Jess and Mau Baja, unwrapped the architect’s perspective for its new one hectare campus at Robillo Subdivision, Manuel Vega St., Consolacion Village.
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Little Me Academy President Percival Olandesca unwraps the architect’s rendition of the new Little Me Academy building to be set up in its new campus at Manuel Vega St., Consolacion Village with the assistance of daughter Ikera, Mayor Oscar S. Moreno, partner Jess Beja, PRISAAP X Pres Palaran Algar and faculty and staff last Jan. 18 at Centrio Mall Activity Center. (WCCS photo)
“Sir Ike” as he is fondly known in campus, relates how the Baja couple whom they met in their Verbum Dei congregation became their partners in the school.
“We share the same thoughts, beliefs and experiences. Their passion with kids matched ours kasiwhen I see kids, I want to play with them immediately, even at my age! When we brought them around our school, we immediately saw that they have the character, values and feelings we shared which became the seed that became a big tree.”
Like the Baja couple, Sir Ike and Teacher Ram look forward to the day when all LMA employees are shareholders and lifelong partners of the school. To start, they announced that LMA Assistant School Director Keny Lourdie Waban and School Registrar Cristina Marie Aguirre would be awarded shares of stock in LMA.
“Our school turns 10 next year, those 2 teachers are in their 8th year in the school,” Sir Ike explains. “Through all these years, we saw their loyalty and dedication because private schools are traditionally the jumping off points to public schools, many are only with us for the experience before they move on.”
“But in their case, they have proven their loyalty to us because despite the problems we encounter, they always manage to find solutions. It’s like we see ourselves in them because we both also started as workers, we also provided solutions to our bosses for the problems we encountered,” he added. “It’s also part of our bigger plan for the future. We want all our employees to be shareholders.”
Ms. Olandesca, (better known to LMA faculty and students as “Teacher Ram”), said the new campus will initially house a 3-story building but will eventually have a 6-story main building and another 6-story building at the first corner with the rest of the area occupied by a gym, playground and basketball court.
“The ground floor of the 1st 3-story bldg. would be done by June, 2016. God willing, the entire complex could be completed in 2 years with construction continuing over the period. We will keep the original campus in Kauswagan and with God’s grace, we will also put up another one after this.”
Earlier the same day, Msgr. Rey Manuel Monsanto, assisted by Fr. Victorino Caritos, VDMF, officiated the blessing rites of the new site in the presence of school stakeholders and friends including Dr. Jean S. Macasero, DepEd City Division’s Private Schools Coordinator, Palaran Algar, Region X President, Private Schools and School Administrators Association of the Philippines (PRISAAP), Mexican Verbum Dei Missionary Couple Alfonso and Adriana Ochoa, Zone Ecclesial Responsible of the Philippines, Luisa Mesina, together with Gabriela Rocha and Sr. Connie Tenorio.
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Little Me Academy principals, partners, stakeholders and friends from the Verbu Dei community release balloons following the ground breaking for a new campus at Manuel Vega St., Consolacion Village last Jan. 18 (WCCS photo)
The original Kauswagan campus accommodates almost 400 students with room for an additional 150. Starting with the coming school year, the ground floor of the new campus can accommodate 500 kids.
Despite the boom in enrollment primarily driven by LMA’s proprietary reading skills system developed by the couple in-house, the school still maintains its one teacher to 12 student ratio for the pre-school and primary levels, and one teacher to 25 students for Grades 4-10. An additional 24 teachers will be hired to complement the 18 who now staff the Kauswagan campus.
The two campuses would be able to accommodate up to 4,000 students subject to DepEd restrictions, by school year 2018.
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Little Me Academy principals Sir Ike and Teacher Ram Olandesca with daughter Ikera break ground for the new Litle Me Academy campus at Manuel Vega St., Consolacion Village together with partners Jess and Mau Beja, and friends last Jan. 18. (WCCS photo)
“We can now accept students from 2 years old for preschool, and next year up to Grade 10 in Junior High and by 2017, up to Senior High School, God willing,” said Teacher Ram.
Besides the classrooms and offices, the new facility will also house an expanded library; science, speech and computer laboratories; audio visual room and of course a chapel, LMA being a child-centered school community from which students can grow to become morally upright, academically excellent and socially responsible citizens.
With its growing track record in academics and sports, the new campus will provide free reign to students to indulge and develop in extra-curricular activities such as campus journalism, campus ministry, student body organization, campings, visual and performing arts, public speaking and of course sports, especially soccer, mentored by Sir Ike, who has actively participated in several Philippine national leagues.
Ikera L. Olandesca, Teacher Ram and Sir Ike’s 12-year old daughter who is now in Grade 7 of LMA in Kauswagan, relates how the school started 10 years ago when her parents went around Cagayan de Oro city looking for a school that would mold and train her to become a Christ-centered person who was not only intellectually smart, but emotionally and spiritually strong as well.
“Unfortunately, they didn’t find any with which they were satisfied. This served as the inspiration for them to build a school not only for me but for other children whose parents were also similarly searching for a like school,” Ikera told journalists following the launching program.
“Began a mom and dad with great love for their child, we had a baby girl who seemed very smart whom we felt was hungry for more,” Teacher Ram relates. “So we looked around but couldn’t find a school that would satisfy her hunger, so we set up a school for her. And that evolved into something nobler, so it became a school for all parents who shared the same vision and instilled in them love for learning so when their child reaches 7 or 8, he/she can choose to grow at his/her own pace.”
Founded April 2006 but celebrating its anniversary every September, Teacher Ram defines Little Me Academy as “a school which teaches families how to make their children live life to the fullest as they walk humbly with the Lord, and when I say life, I define life as love, integrity, faith and excellence.”
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Little Me Academy principals, partners and stakeholders gives the thumbs up during the ground breaking for its new campus at Manuel Vega St., Consolacion VIllage last Jan. 18 (WCCS photo)
“My mom decided the school would specialize in reading because reading was an essential, fundamental core for the learning of the kids. So we started very small with 14 kids and only 5 teachers – it was very little. Over the years, it progressed with the number of kids, teachers and facilities. So today, it has 370 students, many of whom are very bright and every talented. Today, it’s a Christ-centered community and we’re always there to love each other and be there for each other,” Ikera said.
“One very good thing that makes us different is our ability to enable the children to read at the age of three. Our reading program is eclectic,” Teacher Ram explains. “I studied many other curricular programs, adapted the best from each and created our own Little Me Reading Program which has turned out to be really successful.”
“It started that way and now has evolved into letting these children know Jesus at the age of 3. From an academic perspective to a spiritual perspective, when you put those two together, you bring out children who can face the world, do anything, dream anything, and achieve anything,” she added.
“You can tell the difference with a Little Me-an from the confidence that they exude,” adds Teacher Ram.
Another thing which makes LMA different is its open admission policy.
“When they come in, we don’t make them take an admission exam. As long as the child does not have extreme behavioral issues, we welcome them. We have been very successful in this because we have gotten children failing in other schools and then achieving in our school!”
“When you develop the mind and theheart, it’s easier to push the hands to start working on things, to open the books and study, so it’s really a balance between the two.”
“What’s special about Little Me Academy is that because we’re small, we’re always humble and everyone keeps their feet on the ground,” Ikera shares. “Everyone in the school care for each other, we look out for each other, we respect and love each other. Everybody is equal and we’re like one big family, we are never in conflict with each other and that’s what makes us special.”
“A Little Me-an will always love even if not reciprocated, will always do what’s right even if nobody’s watching, will always commit everything to the Lord, and is simply an ordinary student doing things extraordinarily,” Teacher Ram noted.
She explained how the concept of Little Me started with the thought that you would send your Little Me’s to our school (i.e., your children, your daughter, your son) and evolving into the image and likeness of the child, Jesus.“Jesus said it would be very hard for us to follow Him if we cannot be like little children,” Teacher Ram explained. “And the way to do that is to walk humbly with the Lord and empty yourself to be filled up by Him, to be the person He wants you to be. Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. That is Little Me.”
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